Peabody Energy (NYSE:BTU) Shares Gap Up – Should You Buy?

Peabody Energy Co. (NYSE:BTU)’s share price gapped up prior to trading on Tuesday . The stock had previously closed at $13.35, but opened at $13.94. Peabody Energy shares last traded at $13.90, with a volume of 810,935 shares traded.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

BTU has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets raised shares of Peabody Energy from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $26.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Benchmark reduced their price objective on shares of Peabody Energy from $30.00 to $26.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective on shares of Peabody Energy from $30.00 to $26.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 6th.

Peabody Energy Trading Up 4.0 %

The firm has a market capitalization of $1.69 billion, a PE ratio of 5.16 and a beta of 0.94. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $16.38 and its 200 day moving average price is $21.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 2.15 and a quick ratio of 1.68.

Peabody Energy (NYSE:BTU) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The coal producer reported $0.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.53 by ($0.25). Peabody Energy had a net margin of 8.75% and a return on equity of 10.33%. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Peabody Energy Co. will post 2.61 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Peabody Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 11th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 19th were issued a dividend of $0.075 per share. This represents a $0.30 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.16%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 19th. Peabody Energy’s payout ratio is 11.11%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Peabody Energy

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of BTU. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Peabody Energy in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $5,162,000. Neo Ivy Capital Management acquired a new stake in Peabody Energy in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,742,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its stake in Peabody Energy by 11.9% in the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 162,948 shares of the coal producer’s stock valued at $3,412,000 after acquiring an additional 17,335 shares in the last quarter. Vident Advisory LLC boosted its stake in Peabody Energy by 187.6% in the fourth quarter. Vident Advisory LLC now owns 35,081 shares of the coal producer’s stock valued at $735,000 after acquiring an additional 22,884 shares in the last quarter. Finally, State of Wyoming boosted its stake in Peabody Energy by 51.3% in the fourth quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 36,559 shares of the coal producer’s stock valued at $766,000 after acquiring an additional 12,403 shares in the last quarter. 87.44% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.