Peabody Energy (NYSE:BTU) Hits New 52-Week Low – Time to Sell?

Peabody Energy Co. (NYSE:BTU)’s stock price hit a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Monday . The stock traded as low as $17.83 and last traded at $17.83, with a volume of 5209 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $17.88.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on BTU. B. Riley upped their price objective on Peabody Energy from $32.00 to $34.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 17th. Benchmark increased their target price on Peabody Energy from $28.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their target price 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. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upgraded Peabody Energy from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $26.00 price target for the company in a research note on Monday, December 16th.

Peabody Energy Trading Up 0.6 %

The company has a quick ratio of 1.75, a current ratio of 2.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09. The firm has a market cap of $2.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 4.76 and a beta of 0.99. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $23.34 and a 200-day moving average price of $23.45.

Peabody Energy (NYSE:BTU) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The coal producer reported $0.74 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.58 by $0.16. Peabody Energy had a return on equity of 14.74% and a net margin of 12.24%. The firm had revenue of $1.09 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.07 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.80 EPS. Peabody Energy’s quarterly revenue was up .8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that Peabody Energy Co. will post 3.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Peabody Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 4th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 14th were issued a dividend of $0.075 per share. This represents a $0.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.67%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, November 14th. Peabody Energy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 7.94%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO Mark Spurbeck sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.52, for a total value of $295,200.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 65,710 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,939,759.20. This trade represents a 13.21 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Peabody Energy

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Financial Management Professionals Inc. bought a new stake in Peabody Energy during the 3rd quarter valued at $36,000. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in Peabody Energy during the 3rd quarter valued at $43,000. Altshuler Shaham Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Peabody Energy in the 2nd quarter worth $44,000. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in shares of Peabody Energy by 292.6% in the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,057 shares of the coal producer’s stock worth $55,000 after buying an additional 1,533 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. raised its position in shares of Peabody Energy by 139.9% during the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,756 shares of the coal producer’s stock worth $73,000 after purchasing an additional 1,607 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 87.44% of the company’s stock.

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.