Van ECK Associates Corp Acquires 1,236,770 Shares of Peabody Energy Corporation $BTU

Van ECK Associates Corp raised its holdings in shares of Peabody Energy Corporation (NYSE:BTU) by 387.1% in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 1,556,305 shares of the coal producer’s stock after buying an additional 1,236,770 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp’s holdings in Peabody Energy were worth $35,982,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Peabody Energy in the first quarter valued at about $25,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Peabody Energy by 104.3% during the 2nd quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 2,006 shares of the coal producer’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 1,024 shares during the period. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd acquired a new position in Peabody Energy in the 4th quarter valued at about $37,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in Peabody Energy by 1,513.7% in the 1st quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,178 shares of the coal producer’s stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 1,105 shares during the period. Finally, Caitlin John LLC bought a new position in Peabody Energy in the 2nd quarter valued at about $45,000. 87.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Peabody Energy Stock Down 0.0%

Shares of BTU opened at $28.91 on Monday. Peabody Energy Corporation has a 12 month low of $16.46 and a 12 month high of $41.14. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $24.02 and its 200-day moving average is $27.93. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.52 billion, a PE ratio of -19.27 and a beta of 0.34. The company has a current ratio of 2.01, a quick ratio of 1.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10.

Peabody Energy (NYSE:BTU) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The coal producer reported ($0.74) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.38) by ($0.36). The company had revenue of $1 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.02 billion. Peabody Energy had a negative net margin of 4.56% and a negative return on equity of 5.22%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 12.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted ($0.23) earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Peabody Energy Corporation will post 0.33 EPS for the current year.

Peabody Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 3rd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 12th will be given a dividend of $0.075 per share. This represents a $0.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, August 12th. Peabody Energy’s dividend payout ratio is presently -20.00%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Benchmark reduced their price objective on Peabody Energy from $40.00 to $36.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 30th. UBS Group lowered their target price on Peabody Energy from $27.00 to $26.50 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. Weiss Ratings downgraded Peabody Energy from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “sell (d)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 23rd. B. Riley Financial decreased their price objective on Peabody Energy from $30.00 to $29.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, Zacks Research cut Peabody Energy from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Peabody Energy has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $33.88.

Peabody Energy Company Profile

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.