Peabody Energy (NYSE:BTU) COO Darren Ronald Yeates Sells 13,892 Shares

Peabody Energy Corporation (NYSE:BTU) COO Darren Ronald Yeates sold 13,892 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.40, for a total transaction of $505,668.80. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer owned 113,440 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,129,216. This trade represents a 10.91% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink.

Peabody Energy Trading Down 4.6%

NYSE BTU traded down $1.69 during trading on Thursday, hitting $35.08. The stock had a trading volume of 4,755,018 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,265,182. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -77.96 and a beta of 0.52. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $32.84 and a 200 day simple moving average of $27.08. Peabody Energy Corporation has a one year low of $9.61 and a one year high of $39.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09, a quick ratio of 1.40 and a current ratio of 1.85.

Peabody Energy (NYSE:BTU) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The coal producer reported $0.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.10 by ($0.01). Peabody Energy had a negative return on equity of 0.93% and a negative net margin of 1.37%.The business had revenue of $1.02 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.02 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.25 earnings per share. Peabody Energy’s revenue was down 9.0% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Peabody Energy Corporation will post 2.61 earnings per share for the current year.

Peabody Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 10th. Investors of record on Monday, February 23rd will be issued a dividend of $0.075 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 23rd. This represents a $0.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.9%. Peabody Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -66.67%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently commented on BTU. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Peabody Energy from $27.00 to $29.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, December 12th. B. Riley Securities lifted their price objective on shares of Peabody Energy from $38.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. Benchmark boosted their price objective on shares of Peabody Energy from $23.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 31st. Zacks Research downgraded Peabody Energy from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on Peabody Energy from $42.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $38.20.

Institutional Trading of Peabody Energy

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lifted its stake in Peabody Energy by 197.7% during the 3rd quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 581,931 shares of the coal producer’s stock valued at $16,457,000 after acquiring an additional 386,470 shares during the period. Vontobel Holding Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Peabody Energy in the 3rd quarter valued at about $1,830,000. Steinberganna Wealth Management acquired a new position in shares of Peabody Energy in the 3rd quarter valued at about $1,555,000. Bayforest Capital Ltd boosted its stake in shares of Peabody Energy by 225.2% in the second quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd now owns 33,686 shares of the coal producer’s stock worth $452,000 after buying an additional 23,327 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Gate City Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Peabody Energy during the second quarter worth about $8,645,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.44% of the company’s stock.

About Peabody Energy

Peabody Energy Corporation is one of the world’s largest private-sector coal companies, engaged primarily in the production and sale of metallurgical and thermal coal. The company’s operations span surface and underground mines, serving utilities, steel mills and other industrial customers that rely on coal as an essential component in power generation and steelmaking. Peabody’s product portfolio includes high-energy thermal coal for electricity generation and low-volatile metallurgical coal used in steel production, reflecting its diverse end-market reach.

Founded in 1883, Peabody Energy has grown from a regional mining concern into a global energy supplier.