FirstEnergy (FE)
Utilities · $26.1B market cap · SEC CIK 0001031296
fundamentals score out of 100
Next reports on Oct 22, 2026, after the close, with analysts expecting $0.94 in earnings per share.
The case for FE
- Revenue growing 9.9% year over year.
- Pays a 4.4% dividend while you wait.
- Gross margin of 61% absorbs cost shocks.
- Moves less than the market (beta 0.39).
The case against
- Burned $1.0B of free cash in FY2025.
- Priced at 24.1× earnings while earnings per share are shrinking (-17.2%).
- Earnings per share fell 17.2%.
- Near the bottom of its 52-week range, 15% below the high. Falling prices usually have a reason; find it first.
- Current liabilities exceed current assets (ratio 0.54).
- P/E of 24.1× is higher than 90% of Utilities companies.
What the score is made of
Each factor is half a curve over reported figures and half a rank among the other Utilities companies (momentum is judged against fixed thresholds only), and the five are blended by weight. It describes the last filing and the current price. It is not a forecast.
| Valuewhat you pay for the earnings, sales, assets and cash | 42 |
|---|---|
| Growthhow fast revenue and earnings are moving, this year and over five | 38 |
| Profitabilityhow much of the revenue becomes profit, and how much of that is cash | 24 |
| Momentumhow the price has behaved lately | 37 |
| Stabilityhow violently it moves, what it owes and what it pays you | 76 |
- Each factor except momentum is half fixed thresholds, half rank among the 31 Utilities companies.
Key numbers
| Price / earnings | 24.1× |
|---|---|
| Price / book | 2.13× |
| Price / sales | 1.7× |
| Revenue growth (YoY) | +9.9% |
| EPS growth (YoY) | -17.2% |
| Gross margin | 61% |
| Operating margin | 17% |
| Net margin | 7% |
| Return on equity | 9% |
| Debt / equity | 2.24× |
| Current ratio | 0.54 |
| Dividend yield | 4.36% |
| Beta | 0.39 |
| 52-week range | $43.00 – $52.34 |
| Position in that range | 19% of the way up |
| 3-month return | -3.2% |
| 1-year return | +4.1% |
Five years of financials, as filed
Pulled from FirstEnergy's XBRL filings on SEC EDGAR. Italic rows are derived from the rows above.
| FY2025 | FY2024 | FY2023 | FY2022 | FY2021 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $15.1B | $13.5B | $12.9B | $12.5B | $11.1B |
| Operating income | $2.2B | $2.4B | $2.3B | $1.9B | $1.7B |
| Net income | $1.0B | $978M | $1.1B | $406M | $1.3B |
| Operating cash flow | $3.7B | $2.9B | $1.4B | $2.7B | $2.8B |
| Capital expenditure | $4.7B | $4.0B | $3.4B | $2.8B | $2.5B |
| Total assets | $55.9B | $52.0B | $48.8B | $46.1B | $45.4B |
| Total liabilities | $42.0B | $38.3B | $37.9B | $35.5B | — |
| Shareholder equity | $12.5B | $12.5B | $10.4B | $10.2B | $8.7B |
| Cash | $57.0M | $111M | $137M | $160M | $1.5B |
| Free cash flow | -$1.0B | -$1.1B | -$2.0B | -$165M | $324M |
| Operating margin | 14.6% | 17.6% | 17.6% | 15.3% | 15.5% |
| Net margin | 6.8% | 7.3% | 8.6% | 3.3% | 11.5% |
| Diluted shares | 578M | 577M | 574M | 572M | 546M |
Share count is up 5.9% over 4 years. Mild issuance.
What FirstEnergy says it does
The Companies FE and its subsidiaries are principally involved in the transmission, distribution, and generation of electricity. FirstEnergy’s electric operating companies comprise one of the nation’s largest investor-owned electric systems, serving over six million customers in the Midwest and Mid-Atlantic regions. FirstEnergy’s transmission operations include more than 24,000 miles of transmission lines and two regional transmission operation centers, and MP and AGC control 3,610 MWs of total generation capacity. Regulated Electric Company Operating Subsidiaries The Electric Companies’ combined service areas encompass approximately 65,000 square miles in Ohio, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Maryland, New Jersey, and New York, providing distribution services for over six million customers in an area with a population of approximately 14 million and a total rate base of approximately $21.3 billion as of December 31, 2025. OE owns…
Risk factors FE lists in its 10-K
- Risks Associated with Damage to Our Reputation and Securities Class-Action Litigation
- Securities class-action litigation against us could have a material adverse effect on our reputation, business, financial condition, results of operations, our ability to access capital, liquidity or cash flows
- In re FirstEnergy Corp. Securities Litigation
- In re: FirstEnergy Corp. Securities Litigation
- Risks Associated with the Execution of Our Strategic Initiatives and the Regulation of Our Distribution and Transmission Businesses
- If our cost saving initiatives do not achieve the expected benefits, there could be negative impacts to FirstEnergy's business, results of operations and financial condition
- Our ability to grow our distribution and transmission businesses is subject to numerous risks and events, many of which are outside of our control
- Complex and changing federal, state and local government regulations and actions, including those associated with rates, could have a negative impact on our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows
- Risks Related to Our Business Operations
- The hazardous activities associated with generation and distribution of electricity could adversely impact our results of operations and financial condition
- Our business is affected by variations in weather and severe weather conditions
- Supply chain disruptions could have an adverse effect on our results of operations, cash flow and financial condition
- We are subject to financial performance risks from regional and general economic cycles as well as data centers and heavy industries such as shale gas, automotive, chemical and steel
- Capital investments and construction projects may not be completed within forecasted budget, schedule or scope parameters or could be canceled which could adversely affect our business and results of operations