TransAlta Co. (TSE:TA) Receives Consensus Rating of “Buy” from Brokerages

Shares of TransAlta Co. (TSE:TA) (NYSE:TAC) have received a consensus rating of “Buy” from the ten research firms that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation, eight have given a buy recommendation and one has issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is C$25.00.

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. Royal Bank Of Canada set a C$24.00 price objective on TransAlta and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 10th. Scotia set a C$27.00 target price on shares of TransAlta and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 10th. National Bank Financial raised their price target on shares of TransAlta from C$22.00 to C$24.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, June 1st. Scotiabank upgraded shares of TransAlta to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 10th. Finally, TD set a C$26.00 price objective on shares of TransAlta and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 10th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Michael Politeski bought 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 4th. The stock was acquired at an average price of C$17.77 per share, with a total value of C$177,700.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider directly owned 85,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately C$1,510,450. This represents a 13.33% increase in their ownership of the stock. Also, insider Jane Nyla Fedoretz sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of C$18.25, for a total transaction of C$182,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 49,906 shares in the company, valued at approximately C$910,784.50. The trade was a 16.69% decrease in their position. Insiders have purchased 30,450 shares of company stock valued at $562,848 in the last three months. 0.21% of the stock is owned by insiders.

TransAlta Stock Up 1.6%

Shares of TA opened at C$17.38 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of C$5.50 billion, a PE ratio of -56.06, a PEG ratio of -0.07 and a beta of 0.73. TransAlta has a 12 month low of C$15.62 and a 12 month high of C$25.03. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is C$18.86 and its two-hundred day moving average price is C$18.27. The company has a current ratio of 0.84, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 238.01.

TransAlta (TSE:TA) (NYSE:TAC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 31st. The company reported C$0.18 EPS for the quarter. The firm had revenue of C$507.00 million for the quarter. TransAlta had a negative return on equity of 1.50% and a negative net margin of 1.02%.

About TransAlta

TransAlta owns, operates and develops a diverse fleet of electrical power generation assets in Canada, the United States and Australia with a focus on long-term shareholder value. TransAlta provides municipalities, medium and large industries, businesses and utility customers with affordable, energy efficient and reliable power. Today, TransAlta is one of Canada’s largest producers of wind power and Alberta’s largest producer of thermal generation and hydro-electric power. For over 114 years, TransAlta has been a responsible operator and a proud member of the communities where we operate and where our employees work and live.