Howard Capital Management Inc. Acquires New Position in FirstEnergy Corporation $FE

Howard Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in FirstEnergy Corporation (NYSE:FE) during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 12,962 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $594,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in FE. SageView Advisory Group LLC raised its holdings in FirstEnergy by 2.3% during the second quarter. SageView Advisory Group LLC now owns 10,253 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $425,000 after purchasing an additional 233 shares during the last quarter. CWM LLC grew its stake in FirstEnergy by 2.0% in the 2nd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 12,044 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $485,000 after acquiring an additional 240 shares during the period. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC increased its stake in FirstEnergy by 0.5% in the second quarter. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC now owns 48,454 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,951,000 after purchasing an additional 241 shares during the last quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of FirstEnergy by 15.2% during the 2nd quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC now owns 1,834 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $74,000 after acquiring an additional 242 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Quadcap Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in FirstEnergy by 0.8% during the second quarter. Quadcap Wealth Management LLC now owns 31,010 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,248,000 after purchasing an additional 246 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.41% of the company’s stock.

FirstEnergy Stock Up 0.0%

FE stock opened at $47.35 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $27.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.64. The company has a current ratio of 0.75, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80. FirstEnergy Corporation has a 52 week low of $37.58 and a 52 week high of $48.20. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $45.65 and its two-hundred day moving average is $44.90.

FirstEnergy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, March 1st. Investors of record on Friday, February 6th will be issued a dividend of $0.445 per share. This represents a $1.78 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.8%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 6th. FirstEnergy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 77.73%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on FE shares. Scotiabank raised their price objective on FirstEnergy from $49.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Friday, October 24th. Citigroup initiated coverage on shares of FirstEnergy in a report on Tuesday, October 7th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $53.00 price objective on the stock. Wolfe Research raised FirstEnergy from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $50.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. Barclays cut their target price on shares of FirstEnergy from $51.00 to $50.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Finally, Mizuho upped their price target on FirstEnergy from $45.00 to $50.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, October 24th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, FirstEnergy has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $48.85.

About FirstEnergy

FirstEnergy Corp. (NYSE: FE) is a U.S.-based electric utility holding company headquartered in Akron, Ohio. The company’s primary business is the delivery of electricity through its regulated transmission and distribution utilities, serving residential, commercial and industrial customers across parts of the Midwest and Mid‑Atlantic. FirstEnergy’s service territory includes states such as Ohio, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Maryland and West Virginia, and it operates primarily within the PJM regional transmission organization.

FirstEnergy’s core activities center on owning and operating electric distribution networks and transmission systems, maintaining and upgrading grid infrastructure, managing storm response and restoration, and offering customer programs that include energy efficiency and reliability services.