FirstEnergy (NYSE:FE) Reaches New 12-Month High on Analyst Upgrade

Shares of FirstEnergy Corporation (NYSE:FE) hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday after JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on the stock from $50.00 to $55.00. JPMorgan Chase & Co. currently has a neutral rating on the stock. FirstEnergy traded as high as $51.41 and last traded at $51.31, with a volume of 948490 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $50.65.

Other equities analysts have also issued reports about the stock. UBS Group reduced their price target on shares of FirstEnergy from $49.00 to $46.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, December 17th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of FirstEnergy from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 19th. Scotiabank reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of FirstEnergy in a report on Thursday, February 19th. Morgan Stanley restated an “overweight” rating on shares of FirstEnergy in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of FirstEnergy from $54.00 to $53.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 20th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $49.71.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director James F. Oneil sold 7,945 shares of FirstEnergy stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.60, for a total transaction of $402,017.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 1,869 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $94,571.40. The trade was a 80.96% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Jon Taylor K. sold 26,800 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.94, for a total transaction of $1,365,192.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 119,552 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,089,978.88. This represents a 18.31% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 39,118 shares of company stock worth $1,989,532. Corporate insiders own 0.17% of the company’s stock.

FirstEnergy News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting FirstEnergy this week:

• Positive Sentiment: JPMorgan raised its price target on FE to $55 (from $50) while keeping a “neutral” rating — the new target implies roughly mid-single-digit upside from recent levels and provides near-term analyst support for the stock. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: FirstEnergy plans to invest about $950 million in Ohio and Pennsylvania grid upgrades — a sizable capital program that should grow the regulated rate base, improve reliability, and support long‑term earnings/stability for a utility. Investors typically view transmission/distribution upgrades as earnings-accretive over time when recoverable through regulators. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Market filings and company notices show FirstEnergy increased its quarterly dividend to $0.465 (annualized $1.86, ~3.6% yield), which supports income-focused investor interest and helps underpin the stock’s defensive appeal.
• Neutral Sentiment: FirstEnergy issued a storm-preparedness notice as crews stand ready for high winds across its service territory — operationally positive for outage response but routine and unlikely to move fundamentals unless major damage occurs. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling: CFO Jon Taylor sold 26,800 shares (~$1.36M at ~$50.94) and director James F. Oneil sold 7,945 shares (~$402k at $50.60) in recent Form 4 filings. Large insider disposals can pressure sentiment even if they’re for personal liquidity or diversification. CFO Form 4 Director Form 4

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. World Investment Advisors boosted its stake in shares of FirstEnergy by 10.9% during the 4th quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 12,358 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $553,000 after acquiring an additional 1,211 shares in the last quarter. Meadowbrook Advisors Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of FirstEnergy in the 4th quarter valued at about $261,000. Corient Private Wealth LLC raised its holdings in FirstEnergy by 13.4% in the 4th quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 49,947 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,236,000 after purchasing an additional 5,892 shares during the period. Hsbc Holdings PLC boosted its position in FirstEnergy by 14.3% during the fourth quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 1,021,430 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $45,764,000 after purchasing an additional 128,044 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Gunpowder Capital Management LLC dba Oliver Wealth Management acquired a new stake in FirstEnergy in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $42,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.41% of the company’s stock.

FirstEnergy Stock Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $29.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.67 and a beta of 0.61. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $48.21 and a 200 day simple moving average of $46.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.83, a current ratio of 0.57 and a quick ratio of 0.46.

FirstEnergy (NYSE:FE) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 17th. The utilities provider reported $0.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.52 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $3.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.20 billion. FirstEnergy had a return on equity of 10.50% and a net margin of 6.76%.During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.67 EPS. FirstEnergy has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.620-2.820 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that FirstEnergy Corporation will post 2.66 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

FirstEnergy Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, May 7th will be paid a $0.465 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 7th. This represents a $1.86 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.6%. This is a boost from FirstEnergy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. FirstEnergy’s dividend payout ratio is 101.14%.

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.