Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. Takes Position in FirstEnergy Corp. (NYSE:FE)

Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. purchased a new position in FirstEnergy Corp. (NYSE:FE - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 6,725 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $267,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of FE. Kestra Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in FirstEnergy during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. True Wealth Design LLC grew its stake in shares of FirstEnergy by 4,571.4% in the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 654 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 640 shares during the period. WASHINGTON TRUST Co increased its holdings in shares of FirstEnergy by 293.0% during the 4th quarter. WASHINGTON TRUST Co now owns 786 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 586 shares during the last quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of FirstEnergy during the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of FirstEnergy during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $34,000. 89.41% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

FirstEnergy Stock Up 2.4 %

Shares of FirstEnergy stock traded up $0.93 on Thursday, reaching $39.41. 6,893,833 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,172,988. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $39.90 and its 200-day moving average price is $41.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.58, a current ratio of 0.56 and a quick ratio of 0.46. FirstEnergy Corp. has a 1-year low of $36.81 and a 1-year high of $44.97. The company has a market cap of $22.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.48.

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FirstEnergy (NYSE:FE - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 26th. The utilities provider reported $0.67 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.70 by ($0.03). FirstEnergy had a return on equity of 11.38% and a net margin of 6.64%. The business had revenue of $3.20 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.53 billion. As a group, equities analysts forecast that FirstEnergy Corp. will post 2.66 EPS for the current year.

FirstEnergy Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 7th will be issued a dividend of $0.445 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 7th. This represents a $1.78 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.52%. This is a boost from FirstEnergy's previous quarterly dividend of $0.43. FirstEnergy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 104.71%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently weighed in on FE. Guggenheim lowered their price objective on FirstEnergy from $52.00 to $45.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 28th. KeyCorp lowered their price target on FirstEnergy from $48.00 to $47.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of FirstEnergy from $48.00 to $41.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 28th. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of FirstEnergy from $41.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, March 21st. Finally, Wolfe Research downgraded shares of FirstEnergy from an "outperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $45.00.

About FirstEnergy

FirstEnergy Corp., through its subsidiaries, generates, transmits, and distributes electricity in the United States. It operates through Regulated Distribution and Regulated Transmission segments. The company owns and operates coal-fired, nuclear, hydroelectric, wind, and solar power generating facilities.