Peabody Energy Co. (NYSE:BTU) Stake Cut by Empire Life Investments Inc.

Empire Life Investments Inc. lessened its holdings in shares of Peabody Energy Co. (NYSE:BTU - Free Report) by 19.1% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 546,253 shares of the coal producer's stock after selling 128,650 shares during the quarter. Empire Life Investments Inc. owned 0.43% of Peabody Energy worth $14,498,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of BTU. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Peabody Energy in the third quarter worth $43,000. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC boosted its position in Peabody Energy by 69.7% during the 3rd quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,802 shares of the coal producer's stock worth $74,000 after purchasing an additional 1,151 shares during the period. Graham Capital Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Peabody Energy in the 3rd quarter valued at $253,000. State of Alaska Department of Revenue raised its position in Peabody Energy by 7.5% in the third quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 140,824 shares of the coal producer's stock valued at $3,736,000 after purchasing an additional 9,803 shares during the period. Finally, Financial Management Professionals Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Peabody Energy during the third quarter worth about $36,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.44% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on BTU shares. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on Peabody Energy from $25.00 to $26.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. B. Riley increased their price objective on shares of Peabody Energy from $32.00 to $34.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 17th. Finally, Benchmark lifted their price objective on shares of Peabody Energy from $28.00 to $30.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday.

Peabody Energy Stock Up 0.8 %

Shares of Peabody Energy stock traded up $0.21 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $26.48. 2,443,743 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,060,853. The company has a quick ratio of 1.92, a current ratio of 2.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09. Peabody Energy Co. has a twelve month low of $20.21 and a twelve month high of $27.29. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $24.25 and a 200-day simple moving average of $23.33. The company has a market cap of $3.33 billion, a PE ratio of 7.01 and a beta of 0.98.

Peabody Energy (NYSE:BTU - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The coal producer reported $0.74 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.58 by $0.16. Peabody Energy had a return on equity of 14.74% and a net margin of 12.24%. The firm had revenue of $1.09 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.07 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.80 EPS. Peabody Energy's quarterly revenue was up .8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that Peabody Energy Co. will post 2.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Peabody Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 4th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 14th will be issued a $0.075 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 14th. This represents a $0.30 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.13%. Peabody Energy's dividend payout ratio is presently 7.94%.

Peabody Energy Profile

Peabody Energy Corporation engages in coal mining business in the United States, Japan, Taiwan, Australia, India, Brazil, Belgium, Chile, France, Indonesia, China, Vietnam, South Korea, Germany, and internationally. The company operates through Seaborne Thermal, Seaborne Metallurgical, Powder River Basin, Other U.S.