Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank Boosts Stock Holdings in FirstEnergy Corp. (NYSE:FE)

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank lifted its holdings in FirstEnergy Corp. (NYSE:FE - Free Report) by 11.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 121,655 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 12,084 shares during the quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank's holdings in FirstEnergy were worth $4,839,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Amundi lifted its position in FirstEnergy by 103.8% during the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 1,843,964 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $73,334,000 after acquiring an additional 939,240 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in FirstEnergy during the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,069,000. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC purchased a new stake in FirstEnergy during the 4th quarter worth approximately $12,198,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC increased its stake in FirstEnergy by 2.4% during the 4th quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 9,318,905 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $371,911,000 after buying an additional 220,433 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its stake in FirstEnergy by 7.9% during the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 2,346,263 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $104,057,000 after buying an additional 171,955 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.41% of the company's stock.

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FirstEnergy Trading Up 1.6 %

NYSE:FE traded up $0.65 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $39.79. 4,587,631 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,072,730. The company has a quick ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 0.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.58. The business has a 50-day moving average of $39.91 and a two-hundred day moving average of $41.47. FirstEnergy Corp. has a twelve month low of $36.81 and a twelve month high of $44.97. The company has a market capitalization of $22.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.67, a PEG ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.48.

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

FirstEnergy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, March 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 7th were given a dividend of $0.425 per share. This represents a $1.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.27%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 7th. FirstEnergy's dividend payout ratio is currently 100.00%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on FE shares. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on FirstEnergy from $48.00 to $41.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Scotiabank dropped their price target on FirstEnergy from $50.00 to $44.00 and set a "sector outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 28th. KeyCorp dropped their price target on FirstEnergy from $48.00 to $47.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on FirstEnergy from $52.00 to $50.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. Finally, Guggenheim dropped their price target on FirstEnergy from $52.00 to $45.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $45.33.

FirstEnergy Profile

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.