Peabody Energy (NYSE:BTU) Price Target Raised to $24.00

Peabody Energy (NYSE:BTU) had its target price boosted by B. Riley from $18.00 to $24.00 in a report issued on Tuesday, MarketBeat.com reports. They currently have a buy rating on the coal producer’s stock.

A number of other brokerages have also issued reports on BTU. UBS Group upped their target price on Peabody Energy from $14.00 to $15.50 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 20th. Wall Street Zen lowered Peabody Energy from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 2nd. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Peabody Energy has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $22.90.

Peabody Energy Stock Performance

Shares of BTU opened at $18.55 on Tuesday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $16.60 and its two-hundred day moving average is $14.45. Peabody Energy has a 52-week low of $9.61 and a 52-week high of $29.94. The firm has a market cap of $2.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.01 and a beta of 0.64. The company has a quick ratio of 1.64, a current ratio of 2.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09.

Peabody Energy (NYSE:BTU) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The coal producer reported ($0.06) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.04) by ($0.02). Peabody Energy had a net margin of 3.43% and a return on equity of 4.41%. The business had revenue of $890.10 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $944.27 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.42 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 14.6% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that Peabody Energy will post 2.61 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Peabody Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 3rd. Investors of record on Thursday, August 14th were given a dividend of $0.075 per share. This represents a $0.30 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, August 14th. Peabody Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 29.13%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Peabody Energy

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its position in shares of Peabody Energy by 104.3% during the 2nd quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 2,006 shares of the coal producer’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 1,024 shares in the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP grew its stake in Peabody Energy by 315.0% during the 1st quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 2,125 shares of the coal producer’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 1,613 shares during the last quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC grew its stake in Peabody Energy by 57.7% during the 2nd quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,229 shares of the coal producer’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 816 shares during the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC grew its stake in Peabody Energy by 48.5% during the 2nd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 2,353 shares of the coal producer’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 768 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in Peabody Energy during the 2nd quarter worth $34,000. 87.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Peabody Energy

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.