Korea Electric Power (NYSE:KEP) Rating Lowered to “Neutral” at Nomura

Korea Electric Power (NYSE:KEP) was downgraded by equities research analysts at Nomura from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report released on Thursday, Marketbeat Ratings reports.

Several other analysts have also recently issued reports on KEP. Morgan Stanley cut shares of Korea Electric Power from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 19th. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Korea Electric Power from a “buy (b)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of Korea Electric Power from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Korea Electric Power currently has a consensus rating of “Reduce”.

Korea Electric Power Stock Performance

Korea Electric Power stock traded down $0.29 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $11.59. 710,227 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 911,761. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $12.22 and its two-hundred day moving average is $15.15. The company has a market capitalization of $14.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 2.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 0.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.56, a current ratio of 0.43 and a quick ratio of 0.29. Korea Electric Power has a fifty-two week low of $11.25 and a fifty-two week high of $23.41.

Korea Electric Power (NYSE:KEP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 12th. The utilities provider reported $0.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.53 by ($0.40). Korea Electric Power had a return on equity of 18.25% and a net margin of 8.95%.The business had revenue of $14.15 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.88 billion. On average, equities research analysts expect that Korea Electric Power will post 2.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Korea Electric Power by 18.5% in the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 29,211 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $216,000 after purchasing an additional 4,556 shares in the last quarter. Creative Planning acquired a new position in shares of Korea Electric Power in the second quarter worth $179,000. Marshall Wace LLP raised its holdings in shares of Korea Electric Power by 3.4% in the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 191,445 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,726,000 after acquiring an additional 6,336 shares during the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. lifted its position in shares of Korea Electric Power by 122.5% in the second quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 142,109 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,024,000 after acquiring an additional 78,238 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Diversify Advisory Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Korea Electric Power during the second quarter valued at $360,000.

Korea Electric Power Company Profile

Korea Electric Power (KEP) is a South Korea–based integrated electric utility engaged in the generation, transmission and distribution of electricity. The company’s activities span power plant operation and maintenance, grid management, fuel procurement and power trading, as well as engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) services for large-scale power projects. Its asset base includes a mix of thermal, nuclear, hydro and renewable generation capacity, and the company supports system planning and reliability functions for the national electricity network.

In addition to core utility operations, KEP provides a range of technical and consulting services tied to power infrastructure, including plant construction, refurbishment and decommissioning support.