Peabody Energy (NYSE:BTU) Given New $24.00 Price Target at BMO Capital Markets

Peabody Energy (NYSE:BTU) had its target price trimmed by BMO Capital Markets from $25.00 to $24.00 in a research report released on Friday morning, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a market perform rating on the coal producer’s stock.

Several other research analysts have also commented on the stock. Benchmark restated a buy rating and issued a $28.00 price objective on shares of Peabody Energy in a report on Friday. B. Riley lowered their price target on shares of Peabody Energy from $32.00 to $31.00 and set a buy rating for the company in a research report on Friday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $28.25.

Peabody Energy Trading Up 2.4 %

Shares of NYSE BTU traded up $0.51 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $22.05. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 3,446,662 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,819,138. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $24.19 and a 200-day simple moving average of $24.38. The stock has a market cap of $2.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.14 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09, a quick ratio of 1.70 and a current ratio of 2.36. Peabody Energy has a 12 month low of $17.71 and a 12 month high of $27.24.

Peabody Energy (NYSE:BTU) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 2nd. The coal producer reported $0.30 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.30. The firm had revenue of $983.60 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $980.03 million. Peabody Energy had a return on equity of 14.98% and a net margin of 11.62%. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.69 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 27.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts anticipate that Peabody Energy will post 3.07 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Peabody Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 5th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 16th will be given a $0.075 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 15th. This represents a $0.30 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.36%. Peabody Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 8.36%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Mark Spurbeck sold 6,826 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.57, for a total transaction of $167,714.82. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 75,464 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,854,150.48. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, CFO Mark Spurbeck sold 6,826 shares of Peabody Energy stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.57, for a total value of $167,714.82. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 75,464 shares in the company, valued at $1,854,150.48. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, COO Darren Ronald Yeates sold 31,980 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $25.48, for a total transaction of $814,850.40. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 78,307 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,995,262.36. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 52,806 shares of company stock valued at $1,339,565. Corporate insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Peabody Energy

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of BTU. Mutual of America Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Peabody Energy during the first quarter valued at $460,000. Capstone Investment Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Peabody Energy during the 1st quarter valued at about $640,000. Privium Fund Management B.V. increased its position in shares of Peabody Energy by 16.1% during the 1st quarter. Privium Fund Management B.V. now owns 10,740 shares of the coal producer’s stock valued at $261,000 after purchasing an additional 1,488 shares during the last quarter. Thomist Capital Management LP lifted its stake in shares of Peabody Energy by 483.0% in the 1st quarter. Thomist Capital Management LP now owns 2,024,769 shares of the coal producer’s stock worth $49,121,000 after purchasing an additional 1,677,448 shares during the period. Finally, Privium Fund Management UK Ltd boosted its holdings in shares of Peabody Energy by 42.4% in the first quarter. Privium Fund Management UK Ltd now owns 13,452 shares of the coal producer’s stock worth $325,000 after buying an additional 4,005 shares during the last quarter. 87.44% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Peabody Energy Company Profile

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.