TransAlta Corporation (NYSE:TAC) Given Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of TransAlta Corporation (NYSE:TAC) (TSE:TA) have been given a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” by the nine research firms that are covering the company, MarketBeat reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, one has assigned a hold recommendation, six have issued a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price target among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $22.25.

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the company. BMO Capital Markets started coverage on TransAlta in a research report on Wednesday, June 10th. They issued an “outperform” rating for the company. Scotiabank raised shares of TransAlta to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 10th. National Bank Financial raised shares of TransAlta from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 24th. TD Securities reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of TransAlta in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, TD Cowen began coverage on shares of TransAlta in a research note on Wednesday, June 10th. They set a “buy” rating for the company.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Rubric Capital Management LP lifted its stake in shares of TransAlta by 32.9% during the 2nd quarter. Rubric Capital Management LP now owns 15,948,451 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $172,084,000 after acquiring an additional 3,948,451 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of TransAlta during the 4th quarter worth approximately $45,298,000. Sculptor Capital LP bought a new stake in shares of TransAlta during the 4th quarter worth approximately $37,958,000. Bank of Montreal Can lifted its stake in shares of TransAlta by 27.5% during the 4th quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 13,295,335 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $168,163,000 after acquiring an additional 2,870,026 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Aventail Capital Group LP bought a new stake in shares of TransAlta during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $38,633,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 59.00% of the company’s stock.

TransAlta Stock Performance

NYSE TAC opened at $13.54 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.28 billion, a PE ratio of -25.06 and a beta of 0.69. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $13.14 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $13.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.61, a current ratio of 0.76 and a quick ratio of 0.70. TransAlta has a 1-year low of $10.28 and a 1-year high of $17.88.

TransAlta (NYSE:TAC) (TSE:TA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.04 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.01 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $406.19 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $436.36 million. TransAlta had a positive return on equity of 9.52% and a negative net margin of 9.46%. On average, research analysts predict that TransAlta will post 0.22 EPS for the current fiscal year.

TransAlta Company Profile

TransAlta Corporation, originally founded in 1909 as Calgary Power Company Ltd., is a publicly traded energy company specializing in the development, ownership and operation of power generation and transmission assets. Headquartered in Calgary, Alberta, TransAlta has grown from its early hydroelectric roots into a diversified energy provider with a multi-fuel generating fleet.

The company’s core business activities encompass power generation, asset management and energy trading services.