Peabody Energy Co. (NYSE:BTU) Stock Position Cut by Ameriprise Financial Inc.

Ameriprise Financial Inc. lessened its stake in Peabody Energy Co. (NYSE:BTU) by 12.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 304,659 shares of the coal producer’s stock after selling 42,232 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc.’s holdings in Peabody Energy were worth $6,380,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of BTU. Barclays PLC grew its position in Peabody Energy by 323.5% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 248,891 shares of the coal producer’s stock valued at $6,605,000 after buying an additional 190,120 shares in the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its holdings in Peabody Energy by 7.5% in the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 16,514 shares of the coal producer’s stock valued at $346,000 after acquiring an additional 1,151 shares during the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC lifted its holdings in Peabody Energy by 3.7% in the 4th quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 24,556 shares of the coal producer’s stock valued at $514,000 after acquiring an additional 885 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its holdings in Peabody Energy by 94.5% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 5,361 shares of the coal producer’s stock valued at $112,000 after acquiring an additional 2,605 shares during the last quarter. Finally, KBC Group NV lifted its holdings in Peabody Energy by 37.0% in the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 4,762 shares of the coal producer’s stock valued at $100,000 after acquiring an additional 1,286 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 87.44% of the company’s stock.

Peabody Energy Price Performance

Shares of NYSE BTU opened at $13.54 on Friday. Peabody Energy Co. has a twelve month low of $9.61 and a twelve month high of $29.94. The company has a current ratio of 2.15, a quick ratio of 1.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The company has a market capitalization of $1.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 5.01 and a beta of 0.49. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $13.18 and a two-hundred day moving average of $17.54.

Peabody Energy (NYSE:BTU) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 6th. The coal producer reported $0.27 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.07 by $0.20. Peabody Energy had a net margin of 8.75% and a return on equity of 10.33%. The company had revenue of $937.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $976.57 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.30 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect that Peabody Energy Co. will post 2.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Peabody Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 4th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.075 per share. This represents a $0.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.22%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 15th. Peabody Energy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 11.19%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. B. Riley cut their price target on shares of Peabody Energy from $27.00 to $19.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 11th. Benchmark cut their price target on shares of Peabody Energy from $26.00 to $23.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 7th.

About Peabody Energy

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.