Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC Grows Stock Holdings in Peabody Energy Co. (NYSE:BTU)

Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC grew its position in shares of Peabody Energy Co. (NYSE:BTU) by 0.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 412,461 shares of the coal producer’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,597 shares during the period. Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC owned about 0.34% of Peabody Energy worth $8,637,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of BTU. WINTON GROUP Ltd raised its position in Peabody Energy by 357.4% during the 4th quarter. WINTON GROUP Ltd now owns 51,930 shares of the coal producer’s stock valued at $1,087,000 after purchasing an additional 40,576 shares during the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp increased its stake in shares of Peabody Energy by 9.8% during the fourth quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp now owns 230,279 shares of the coal producer’s stock valued at $4,822,000 after buying an additional 20,646 shares during the period. Prudential Financial Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Peabody Energy by 3.2% during the fourth quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 280,787 shares of the coal producer’s stock valued at $5,880,000 after acquiring an additional 8,607 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its holdings in Peabody Energy by 6.0% in the fourth quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 3,785,337 shares of the coal producer’s stock valued at $79,265,000 after acquiring an additional 215,614 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Teacher Retirement System of Texas bought a new stake in Peabody Energy in the fourth quarter valued at $1,379,000. 87.44% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Peabody Energy Stock Performance

Shares of BTU stock opened at $13.55 on Tuesday. 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’s fifty day moving average price is $15.41 and its 200-day moving average price is $20.80. The stock has a market cap of $1.65 billion, a PE ratio of 5.02 and a beta of 0.94. Peabody Energy Co. has a 12 month low of $12.15 and a 12 month high of $29.94.

Peabody Energy (NYSE:BTU) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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%. On average, equities analysts expect that Peabody Energy Co. will post 2.61 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Peabody Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 11th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 19th were given a dividend of $0.075 per share. This represents a $0.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.21%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 19th. Peabody Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 11.11%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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

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.