Convergence Investment Partners LLC Invests $856,000 in Peabody Energy Co. (NYSE:BTU)

Convergence Investment Partners LLC bought a new stake in Peabody Energy Co. (NYSE:BTU) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 40,899 shares of the coal producer’s stock, valued at approximately $856,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Creative Planning increased its position in shares of Peabody Energy by 62.7% during the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 17,757 shares of the coal producer’s stock valued at $471,000 after purchasing an additional 6,844 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. grew its position in Peabody Energy by 139.9% during the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,756 shares of the coal producer’s stock valued at $73,000 after acquiring an additional 1,607 shares during the last quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System grew its position in Peabody Energy by 14.5% during the third quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 60,900 shares of the coal producer’s stock valued at $1,616,000 after acquiring an additional 7,700 shares during the last quarter. Financial Management Professionals Inc. bought a new position in shares of Peabody Energy during the 3rd quarter valued at $36,000. Finally, State of Alaska Department of Revenue grew its holdings in shares of Peabody Energy by 7.5% during the 3rd quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 140,824 shares of the coal producer’s stock valued at $3,736,000 after purchasing an additional 9,803 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 87.44% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

BTU has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. BMO Capital Markets raised Peabody Energy from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $26.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Benchmark reduced their price target on Peabody Energy from $30.00 to $26.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price target on Peabody Energy from $30.00 to $26.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 6th.

Peabody Energy Price Performance

Shares of Peabody Energy stock opened at $14.98 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.68, a current ratio of 2.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The firm has a market cap of $1.82 billion, a PE ratio of 5.55 and a beta of 0.95. Peabody Energy Co. has a 12-month low of $14.87 and a 12-month high of $29.94. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $19.12 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $22.54.

Peabody Energy (NYSE:BTU) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The coal producer reported $0.28 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.53 by ($0.25). Peabody Energy had a return on equity of 10.33% and a net margin of 8.75%. As a group, equities analysts expect that Peabody Energy Co. will post 2.61 EPS for the current year.

Peabody Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 11th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 19th will be given a dividend of $0.075 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 19th. This represents a $0.30 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.00%. Peabody Energy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 11.11%.

Peabody Energy 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.