Peabody Energy (NYSE:BTU) Sets New 1-Year High – Here’s What Happened

Peabody Energy Co. (NYSE:BTU)’s share price reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $27.38 and last traded at $26.99, with a volume of 413814 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $26.33.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. B. Riley upped their price objective on shares of Peabody Energy from $32.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 17th. Benchmark upped their price target on Peabody Energy from $28.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on Peabody Energy from $25.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th.

Peabody Energy Price Performance

The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $24.32 and its 200-day simple moving average is $23.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09, a current ratio of 2.32 and a quick ratio of 1.75. The company has a market capitalization of $3.38 billion, a PE ratio of 6.97 and a beta of 0.98.

Peabody Energy (NYSE:BTU) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The coal producer reported $0.74 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.58 by $0.16. Peabody Energy had a net margin of 12.24% and a return on equity of 14.74%. The firm had revenue of $1.09 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.07 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.80 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up .8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Peabody Energy Co. will post 2.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Peabody Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 4th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 14th will be paid a $0.075 dividend. This represents a $0.30 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.12%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 14th. Peabody Energy’s payout ratio is currently 7.94%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Capstone Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Peabody Energy in the 1st quarter valued at $640,000. Mutual of America Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Peabody Energy during the 1st quarter worth about $460,000. Texas Permanent School Fund Corp acquired a new position in shares of Peabody Energy during the 1st quarter worth about $2,338,000. Quantbot Technologies LP increased its holdings in shares of Peabody Energy by 469.8% in the 1st quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 93,200 shares of the coal producer’s stock valued at $2,261,000 after acquiring an additional 76,843 shares during the last quarter. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC raised its position in shares of Peabody Energy by 227.0% during the 1st quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 33,699 shares of the coal producer’s stock worth $818,000 after acquiring an additional 23,393 shares in the last quarter. 87.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Peabody Energy

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.