WINTON GROUP Ltd Boosts Holdings in Peabody Energy Co. (NYSE:BTU)

WINTON GROUP Ltd increased its holdings in Peabody Energy Co. (NYSE:BTU) by 357.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 51,930 shares of the coal producer’s stock after purchasing an additional 40,576 shares during the period. WINTON GROUP Ltd’s holdings in Peabody Energy were worth $1,087,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in BTU. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC boosted its position in Peabody Energy by 144.2% during the fourth quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 3,951 shares of the coal producer’s stock valued at $83,000 after buying an additional 2,333 shares during the period. Elevate Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Peabody Energy during the 4th quarter valued at about $1,889,000. Rhumbline Advisers grew its position in Peabody Energy by 2.4% during the 4th quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 327,601 shares of the coal producer’s stock worth $6,860,000 after acquiring an additional 7,586 shares during the last quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC increased its stake in Peabody Energy by 15.7% in the 4th quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 43,766 shares of the coal producer’s stock worth $916,000 after purchasing an additional 5,940 shares during the period. Finally, Vontobel Holding Ltd. lifted its position in Peabody Energy by 52.1% in the fourth quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. now owns 57,800 shares of the coal producer’s stock valued at $1,210,000 after purchasing an additional 19,800 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 87.44% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on BTU shares. Jefferies Financial Group cut their target price on shares of Peabody Energy from $30.00 to $26.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 6th. BMO Capital Markets raised shares of Peabody Energy from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $26.00 price target on the stock in a report on Monday, December 16th. Finally, Benchmark lowered their price objective on shares of Peabody Energy from $30.00 to $26.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 7th.

Peabody Energy Price Performance

Shares of Peabody Energy stock opened at $13.72 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $1.67 billion, a PE ratio of 5.08 and a beta of 0.94. The business has a 50 day moving average of $15.53 and a 200 day moving average of $20.85. Peabody Energy Co. has a 52 week low of $12.15 and a 52 week high of $29.94. The company has a quick ratio of 1.68, a current ratio of 2.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27.

Peabody Energy (NYSE:BTU) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The coal producer reported $0.28 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.53 by ($0.25). Peabody Energy had a return on equity of 10.33% and a net margin of 8.75%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Peabody Energy Co. will post 2.61 earnings per share for the current year.

Peabody Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 11th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 19th were given a dividend of $0.075 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 19th. This represents a $0.30 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.19%. Peabody Energy’s payout ratio is 11.11%.

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.