Peabody Energy Target of Unusually Large Options Trading (NYSE:BTU)

Peabody Energy Corporation (NYSE:BTU) was the target of unusually large options trading on Friday. Stock traders acquired 21,779 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of 94% compared to the average daily volume of 11,255 call options.

Key Stories Impacting Peabody Energy

Here are the key news stories impacting Peabody Energy this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Centurion mine ramping ahead of schedule and company says key operational and financial metrics met or exceeded full‑year 2025 guidance — this supports near‑term cash flow expectations. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Board declared a quarterly common dividend of $0.075 per share (payable March 10; ex‑dividend Feb 23), which can attract income‑oriented investors and supports the stock’s appeal amid recent gains. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Q4 earnings materials and transcripts are available for investors digging into detail; these provide management commentary on production, pricing (coking coal tailwinds) and the Centurion ramp. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Market commentary notes BTU has strongly outperformed the past year (roughly +95% cited), which reduces near‑term upside potential for some investors given elevated valuation metrics. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Q4 results: EPS of $0.09 missed consensus by $0.01 and revenue fell ~9% year‑over‑year; the company reported a slim net margin and very low ROE, which could weigh on sentiment if margins don’t improve. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Zacks Research downgraded BTU from “hold” to “strong sell,” which may pressure sentiment among some retail and institutional holders despite the operational positives. Read More.

Peabody Energy Stock Performance

Peabody Energy stock traded up $2.90 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $37.14. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,481,305 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,116,697. The firm has a market cap of $4.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -127.53 and a beta of 0.52. Peabody Energy has a twelve month low of $9.61 and a twelve month high of $39.95. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $32.12 and a 200-day moving average price of $26.46. The company has a current ratio of 1.99, a quick ratio of 1.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09.

Peabody Energy (NYSE:BTU) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The coal producer reported $0.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.10 by ($0.01). Peabody Energy had a negative net margin of 0.83% and a negative return on equity of 0.25%. The company had revenue of $1.02 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.02 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.25 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 9.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Peabody Energy will post 2.61 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Peabody Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 23rd will be given a dividend of $0.075 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 23rd. This represents a $0.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.8%. Peabody Energy’s payout ratio is -103.45%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CAO Scott T. Jarboe sold 2,151 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $34.26, for a total value of $73,693.26. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 82,306 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,819,803.56. This represents a 2.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.41% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Peabody Energy

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of BTU. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA bought a new position in shares of Peabody Energy during the 4th quarter worth about $90,603,000. Sourcerock Group LLC bought a new stake in Peabody Energy during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $28,092,000. State Street Corp raised its holdings in shares of Peabody Energy by 19.3% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 9,208,031 shares of the coal producer’s stock valued at $123,572,000 after buying an additional 1,487,531 shares during the last quarter. Phoenix Financial Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Peabody Energy during the fourth quarter worth approximately $38,125,000. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in Peabody Energy by 8.5% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 15,135,096 shares of the coal producer’s stock valued at $449,512,000 after buying an additional 1,191,438 shares during the last quarter. 87.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently weighed in on BTU shares. Wall Street Zen upgraded Peabody Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. Benchmark increased their price objective on shares of Peabody Energy from $23.00 to $32.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 31st. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Peabody Energy from $27.00 to $29.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, December 12th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Peabody Energy from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a report on Monday, January 12th. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded Peabody Energy from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $37.00.

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.