Peabody Energy (NYSE:BTU) Sets New 12-Month High on Analyst Upgrade

Peabody Energy Corporation (NYSE:BTU)’s share price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday after Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on the stock from $42.00 to $44.00. Jefferies Financial Group currently has a buy rating on the stock. Peabody Energy traded as high as $37.89 and last traded at $37.7560, with a volume of 8099 shares. The stock had previously closed at $37.14.

Other analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. Benchmark lifted their price target on shares of Peabody Energy from $23.00 to $32.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 31st. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Peabody Energy from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Sunday, January 11th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Peabody Energy from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research report on Monday, January 12th. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Peabody Energy from $27.00 to $29.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, December 12th. Finally, Zacks Research raised Peabody Energy from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 2nd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Peabody Energy presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $32.25.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CAO Scott T. Jarboe sold 2,151 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $34.26, for a total transaction of $73,693.26. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 82,306 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,819,803.56. This trade represents a 2.55% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.41% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Peabody Energy by 197.7% during the 3rd quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 581,931 shares of the coal producer’s stock valued at $16,457,000 after acquiring an additional 386,470 shares during the last quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. bought a new position in Peabody Energy during the third quarter valued at approximately $1,830,000. Bayforest Capital Ltd boosted its holdings in Peabody Energy by 225.2% in the second quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd now owns 33,686 shares of the coal producer’s stock worth $452,000 after purchasing an additional 23,327 shares during the last quarter. Gate City Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Peabody Energy in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $8,645,000. Finally, LSV Asset Management raised its stake in Peabody Energy by 11.0% during the 2nd quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 583,539 shares of the coal producer’s stock valued at $7,831,000 after buying an additional 57,900 shares during the last quarter. 87.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Peabody Energy Price Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $4.59 billion, a P/E ratio of -130.19 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09, a quick ratio of 1.49 and a current ratio of 1.99. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $30.12 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $24.84.

Peabody Energy (NYSE:BTU) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 30th. The coal producer reported ($0.58) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.19) by ($0.39). The firm had revenue of $1.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $990.20 million. Peabody Energy had a negative net margin of 0.83% and a negative return on equity of 0.25%. The firm’s revenue was down 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.74 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Peabody Energy Corporation will post 2.61 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Peabody Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 3rd. Investors of record on Thursday, November 13th were issued a $0.075 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, November 13th. This represents a $0.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.8%. Peabody Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -103.45%.

Peabody Energy Company Profile

Peabody Energy Corporation is one of the world’s largest private-sector coal companies, engaged primarily in the production and sale of metallurgical and thermal coal. The company’s operations span surface and underground mines, serving utilities, steel mills and other industrial customers that rely on coal as an essential component in power generation and steelmaking. Peabody’s product portfolio includes high-energy thermal coal for electricity generation and low-volatile metallurgical coal used in steel production, reflecting its diverse end-market reach.

Founded in 1883, Peabody Energy has grown from a regional mining concern into a global energy supplier.