Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd Has $2.25 Million Stake in FirstEnergy Corp. (NYSE:FE)

Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd lifted its stake in shares of FirstEnergy Corp. (NYSE:FE) by 2.5% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 56,613 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 1,379 shares during the quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd’s holdings in FirstEnergy were worth $2,252,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its stake in FirstEnergy by 1,417.3% in the third 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. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC increased its position in FirstEnergy by 5.3% in the 3rd quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 9,098,472 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $403,517,000 after buying an additional 457,231 shares in the last quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC acquired a new position in FirstEnergy during the 4th quarter worth approximately $12,198,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its stake in FirstEnergy by 4,445.0% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 219,434 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $9,732,000 after buying an additional 214,606 shares during the period. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its holdings in FirstEnergy by 7.9% in the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 2,346,263 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $104,057,000 after acquiring an additional 171,955 shares in the last quarter. 89.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on FirstEnergy from $52.00 to $50.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 22nd. KeyCorp lowered their price objective on shares of FirstEnergy from $48.00 to $47.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of FirstEnergy in a research note on Monday, October 14th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $46.00 price objective on the stock. Scotiabank raised shares of FirstEnergy from a “sector perform” rating to a “sector outperform” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $45.00 to $50.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of FirstEnergy from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, FirstEnergy presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $46.27.

FirstEnergy Price Performance

Shares of NYSE FE opened at $39.82 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $22.95 billion, a PE ratio of 25.69, a PEG ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 0.52. The company has a quick ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 0.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.58. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $39.95 and its 200-day moving average price is $41.85. FirstEnergy Corp. has a twelve month low of $36.01 and a twelve month high of $44.97.

FirstEnergy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, March 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 7th will be paid a $0.425 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 7th. This represents a $1.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.27%. FirstEnergy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 109.68%.

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.