FirstEnergy (NYSE:FE) Upgraded by Argus to “Buy”

FirstEnergy (NYSE:FE) was upgraded by equities research analysts at Argus from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report released on Friday, MarketBeat reports. The brokerage currently has a $50.00 price objective on the utilities provider’s stock. Argus’ target price points to a potential upside of 13.64% from the stock’s current price.

Several other research firms have also recently issued reports on FE. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on FirstEnergy from $45.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Barclays increased their target price on shares of FirstEnergy from $39.00 to $40.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 9th. Scotiabank boosted their price target on shares of FirstEnergy from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 20th. Mizuho increased their price objective on shares of FirstEnergy from $38.00 to $41.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, June 3rd. Finally, Bank of America raised their price objective on shares of FirstEnergy from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $44.18.

FirstEnergy Stock Up 1.8 %

FE stock opened at $44.00 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $25.32 billion, a PE ratio of 25.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 0.50. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $42.50 and its 200 day simple moving average is $40.00. FirstEnergy has a fifty-two week low of $32.18 and a fifty-two week high of $44.97. The company has a quick ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 0.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.52.

FirstEnergy (NYSE:FE) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The utilities provider reported $0.56 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.56. The company had revenue of $3.28 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.47 billion. FirstEnergy had a net margin of 6.61% and a return on equity of 12.12%. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.47 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that FirstEnergy will post 2.7 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. FinTrust Capital Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of FirstEnergy by 1,150.9% in the first quarter. FinTrust Capital Advisors LLC now owns 663 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 610 shares during the period. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. boosted its position in FirstEnergy by 1,138.9% during the 2nd quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 669 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 615 shares during the period. Scarborough Advisors LLC purchased a new position in FirstEnergy during the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL acquired a new position in shares of FirstEnergy in the 2nd quarter valued at about $32,000. Finally, Western Pacific Wealth Management LP acquired a new position in shares of FirstEnergy in the 1st quarter valued at about $36,000. 89.41% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

FirstEnergy Company 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.