Wellington Management Group LLP Raises Stake in Peabody Energy Co. (NYSE:BTU)

Wellington Management Group LLP raised its stake in shares of Peabody Energy Co. (NYSE:BTU - Free Report) by 26.7% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 251,078 shares of the coal producer's stock after acquiring an additional 52,960 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP owned approximately 0.21% of Peabody Energy worth $6,664,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. State Street Corp increased its holdings in Peabody Energy by 7.6% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 7,631,707 shares of the coal producer's stock valued at $202,546,000 after purchasing an additional 540,219 shares during the last quarter. Readystate Asset Management LP grew its stake in shares of Peabody Energy by 75.2% in the third quarter. Readystate Asset Management LP now owns 81,919 shares of the coal producer's stock valued at $2,174,000 after buying an additional 35,159 shares in the last quarter. Centiva Capital LP purchased a new stake in shares of Peabody Energy in the 3rd quarter valued at $677,000. Maverick Capital Ltd. lifted its stake in Peabody Energy by 32.8% during the 3rd quarter. Maverick Capital Ltd. now owns 93,846 shares of the coal producer's stock worth $2,491,000 after acquiring an additional 23,172 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Progeny 3 Inc. boosted its holdings in Peabody Energy by 1.6% during the 3rd quarter. Progeny 3 Inc. now owns 3,580,014 shares of the coal producer's stock valued at $95,014,000 after acquiring an additional 56,280 shares during the period. 87.44% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Peabody Energy Stock Down 0.3 %

NYSE BTU traded down $0.05 on Tuesday, hitting $21.45. 2,328,632 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,957,779. Peabody Energy Co. has a fifty-two week low of $20.21 and a fifty-two week high of $29.94. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $25.34 and a 200-day moving average price of $23.84. The company has a quick ratio of 1.75, a current ratio of 2.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09. The company has a market cap of $2.61 billion, a PE ratio of 5.69 and a beta of 0.95.

Peabody Energy (NYSE:BTU - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The coal producer reported $0.74 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.58 by $0.16. The firm had revenue of $1.09 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.07 billion. Peabody Energy had a net margin of 12.24% and a return on equity of 14.74%. The company's revenue was up .8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.80 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Peabody Energy Co. will post 3.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Peabody Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 4th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 14th were paid a dividend of $0.075 per share. This represents a $0.30 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.40%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, November 14th. Peabody Energy's payout ratio is 7.94%.

Insider Activity at Peabody Energy

In other news, CFO Mark Spurbeck sold 10,000 shares of Peabody Energy stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.52, for a total transaction of $295,200.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 65,710 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,939,759.20. The trade was a 13.21 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

BTU has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Benchmark boosted their price target on shares of Peabody Energy from $28.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. B. Riley upped their target price on shares of Peabody Energy from $32.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 17th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised shares of Peabody Energy from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $26.00 price target for the company in a research report on Monday.

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.