KeyCorp Raises FirstEnergy (NYSE:FE) Price Target to $48.00

FirstEnergy (NYSE:FE) had its price objective increased by KeyCorp from $47.00 to $48.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an “overweight” rating on the utilities provider’s stock. KeyCorp’s target price suggests a potential upside of 8.43% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently issued reports on FE. Argus upgraded shares of FirstEnergy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $50.00 price target for the company in a research report on Friday, September 20th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on FirstEnergy from $48.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on FirstEnergy from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Scotiabank lifted their price target on shares of FirstEnergy from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 20th. Finally, Barclays lifted their target price on shares of FirstEnergy from $40.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $46.00.

FirstEnergy Price Performance

Shares of FE opened at $44.27 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $25.48 billion, a PE ratio of 25.44, a P/E/G ratio of 2.30 and a beta of 0.50. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $43.63 and its two-hundred day moving average is $40.86. FirstEnergy has a twelve month low of $34.91 and a twelve month high of $44.97. The company has a current ratio of 0.51, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.52.

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On FirstEnergy

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew its stake in shares of FirstEnergy by 34.6% during the third quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 33,827 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,490,000 after acquiring an additional 8,703 shares in the last quarter. Spirit of America Management Corp NY grew its stake in FirstEnergy by 7.9% during the 3rd quarter. Spirit of America Management Corp NY now owns 13,700 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $608,000 after purchasing an additional 1,000 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its position in shares of FirstEnergy by 1,417.3% in the 3rd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 743,303 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $32,965,000 after purchasing an additional 694,313 shares in the last quarter. Commonwealth Financial Services LLC boosted its stake in shares of FirstEnergy by 10.4% during the 3rd quarter. Commonwealth Financial Services LLC now owns 6,477 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $288,000 after buying an additional 608 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. grew its position in shares of FirstEnergy by 21.6% during the third quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. now owns 51,596 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,288,000 after buying an additional 9,169 shares in the last quarter. 89.41% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.