Korea Electric Power (NYSE:KEP) Cut to “Strong Sell” at Zacks Research

Korea Electric Power (NYSE:KEP) was downgraded by equities research analysts at Zacks Research from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a note issued to investors on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

Other research analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. Weiss Ratings upgraded Korea Electric Power from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Monday. Bank of America lowered shares of Korea Electric Power from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded Korea Electric Power from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, March 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold”.

Korea Electric Power Trading Up 1.9%

Shares of NYSE KEP opened at $14.52 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 0.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.70. The company’s fifty day moving average is $18.97 and its 200-day moving average is $17.01. Korea Electric Power has a twelve month low of $7.20 and a twelve month high of $23.41. The stock has a market cap of $18.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 3.09, a P/E/G ratio of 0.16 and a beta of 1.01.

Korea Electric Power (NYSE:KEP) last released its earnings results on Saturday, February 14th. The utilities provider reported ($0.10) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Korea Electric Power had a net margin of 8.80% and a return on equity of 18.76%. The company had revenue of $13.61 billion during the quarter.

Institutional Trading of Korea Electric Power

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in KEP. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership boosted its stake in shares of Korea Electric Power by 26.0% in the 3rd quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 1,514,228 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $19,761,000 after buying an additional 312,680 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp grew its position in shares of Korea Electric Power by 5.3% during the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 883,266 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $14,574,000 after acquiring an additional 44,617 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Korea Electric Power by 9.1% during the 4th quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 847,902 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $13,990,000 after purchasing an additional 70,943 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in shares of Korea Electric Power by 1.3% in the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 703,998 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $11,624,000 after purchasing an additional 8,882 shares during the period. Finally, Capital Wealth Planning LLC raised its holdings in shares of Korea Electric Power by 56.6% in the 4th quarter. Capital Wealth Planning LLC now owns 595,498 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $9,921,000 after purchasing an additional 215,150 shares during the period.

About Korea Electric Power

Korea Electric Power (KEP) is a South Korea–based integrated electric utility engaged in the generation, transmission and distribution of electricity. The company’s activities span power plant operation and maintenance, grid management, fuel procurement and power trading, as well as engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) services for large-scale power projects. Its asset base includes a mix of thermal, nuclear, hydro and renewable generation capacity, and the company supports system planning and reliability functions for the national electricity network.

In addition to core utility operations, KEP provides a range of technical and consulting services tied to power infrastructure, including plant construction, refurbishment and decommissioning support.