Financial Analysis: FirstEnergy (FE) & Its Competitors

FirstEnergy (NYSE:FE – Get Free Report) is one of 105 publicly-traded companies in the “Electric Utilities” industry, but how does it contrast to its rivals? We will compare FirstEnergy to related companies based on the strength of its institutional ownership, profitability, analyst recommendations, earnings, valuation, dividends and risk.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

89.4% of FirstEnergy shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 60.0% of shares of all “Electric Utilities” companies are held by institutional investors. 0.1% of FirstEnergy shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 6.2% of shares of all “Electric Utilities” companies are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares FirstEnergy and its rivals gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

FirstEnergy has higher revenue, but lower earnings than its rivals. FirstEnergy is trading at a higher price-to-earnings ratio than its rivals, indicating that it is currently more expensive than other companies in its industry.

Dividends

FirstEnergy pays an annual dividend of $1.86 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.0%. FirstEnergy pays out 89.4% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. As a group, “Electric Utilities” companies pay a dividend yield of 3.2% and pay out 64.4% of their earnings in the form of a dividend. FirstEnergy has raised its dividend for 3 consecutive years.

Risk and Volatility

FirstEnergy has a beta of 0.39, indicating that its share price is 61% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, FirstEnergy’s rivals have a beta of -2.25, indicating that their average share price is 325% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent recommendations for FirstEnergy and its rivals, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

FirstEnergy currently has a consensus price target of $50.77, indicating a potential upside of 9.32%. As a group, “Electric Utilities” companies have a potential upside of 5.20%. Given FirstEnergy’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, equities analysts clearly believe FirstEnergy is more favorable than its rivals.

Profitability

This table compares FirstEnergy and its rivals’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

Summary

FirstEnergy beats its rivals on 8 of the 15 factors compared.

FirstEnergy Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

FirstEnergy Corp., through its subsidiaries, generates, transmits, and distributes electricity in the United States. It operates through Regulated Distribution and Regulated Transmission segments. The company owns and operates coal-fired, nuclear, hydroelectric, wind, and solar power generating facilities. It operates 24,080 circuit miles of overhead and underground transmission lines; and electric distribution systems, including 274,518 miles of overhead pole line and underground conduit carrying primary, secondary, and street lighting circuits. The company serves approximately 6 million customers in Ohio, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Maryland, New Jersey, and New York. FirstEnergy Corp. was incorporated in 1996 and is headquartered in Akron, Ohio.