TransAlta (TSE:TA) Share Price Breaks Above 200 Day Moving Average – Should You Sell?

TransAlta Co. (TSE:TA) (NYSE:TAC) shares passed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Tuesday. The stock has a 200-day moving average of C$17.95 and traded as high as C$18.12. TransAlta shares last traded at C$18.06, with a volume of 1,559,120 shares changing hands.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

TA has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Desjardins boosted their price target on TransAlta from C$18.50 to C$19.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, July 3rd. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce lowered their price target on TransAlta from C$26.00 to C$24.50 in a report on Tuesday, September 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of C$24.61.

TransAlta Stock Up 0.9%

The firm’s fifty day moving average price is C$17.35 and its 200-day moving average price is C$17.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 238.01, a current ratio of 0.84 and a quick ratio of 0.61. The firm has a market capitalization of C$5.84 billion, a P/E ratio of -59.52, a PEG ratio of -0.07 and a beta of 0.54.

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

Insider Activity at TransAlta

In other news, insider Michael Politeski acquired 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 15th. The stock was acquired at an average price of C$16.02 per share, for a total transaction of C$80,100.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider directly owned 90,000 shares in the company, valued at C$1,441,800. This represents a 5.88% increase in their position. Corporate insiders own 0.21% of the company’s stock.

TransAlta Company Profile

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.