Brokerages Set Pacific Gas & Electric Co. (NYSE:PCG) Target Price at $20.55

Shares of Pacific Gas & Electric Co. (NYSE:PCG) have received an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the fifteen analysts that are covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, seven have given a buy recommendation and two have given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price target among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $20.5455.

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Pacific Gas & Electric from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday. Barclays boosted their price objective on Pacific Gas & Electric from $20.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 1st. TD Cowen initiated coverage on Pacific Gas & Electric in a research note on Thursday, October 16th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $21.00 target price for the company. Cowen reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Pacific Gas & Electric in a research report on Thursday, December 4th. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $21.00 price target on Pacific Gas & Electric and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 22nd.

Pacific Gas & Electric Stock Down 1.0%

Shares of NYSE:PCG opened at $15.63 on Thursday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $15.80 and a 200-day simple moving average of $15.34. The stock has a market capitalization of $34.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.13, a PEG ratio of 0.60 and a beta of 0.38. Pacific Gas & Electric has a 1 year low of $12.97 and a 1 year high of $17.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.81, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a current ratio of 0.94.

Pacific Gas & Electric (NYSE:PCG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 23rd. The utilities provider reported $0.50 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.44 by $0.06. Pacific Gas & Electric had a net margin of 10.93% and a return on equity of 11.10%. The firm had revenue of $6.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.33 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.37 earnings per share. Pacific Gas & Electric’s revenue was up 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts forecast that Pacific Gas & Electric will post 1.49 earnings per share for the current year.

Pacific Gas & Electric Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 15th. Investors of record on Wednesday, December 31st were issued a dividend of $0.05 per share. This represents a $0.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, December 31st. This is a positive change from Pacific Gas & Electric’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.03. Pacific Gas & Electric’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 16.81%.

Insider Activity at Pacific Gas & Electric

In other Pacific Gas & Electric news, Director John O. Larsen bought 7,500 shares of Pacific Gas & Electric stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 4th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $15.96 per share, for a total transaction of $119,700.00. Following the purchase, the director owned 18,111 shares in the company, valued at $289,051.56. This represents a 70.68% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.14% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Titleist Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Pacific Gas & Electric by 2.1% in the 3rd quarter. Titleist Asset Management LLC now owns 43,832 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $661,000 after purchasing an additional 882 shares in the last quarter. FreeGulliver LLC raised its stake in Pacific Gas & Electric by 7.9% during the third quarter. FreeGulliver LLC now owns 13,482 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $203,000 after buying an additional 987 shares in the last quarter. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI lifted its holdings in Pacific Gas & Electric by 3.3% during the 2nd quarter. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI now owns 34,867 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $487,000 after buying an additional 1,099 shares during the last quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Pacific Gas & Electric by 8.1% during the 3rd quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 17,195 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $259,000 after buying an additional 1,283 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Covestor Ltd grew its position in shares of Pacific Gas & Electric by 20.6% in the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 9,029 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $136,000 after acquiring an additional 1,544 shares in the last quarter. 78.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Pacific Gas & Electric

Pacific Gas & Electric (NYSE: PCG) is an investor-owned utility holding company whose principal operating subsidiary, Pacific Gas and Electric Company, provides electricity and natural gas service in northern and central California. The company’s core activities include the generation, procurement, transmission and distribution of electric power, as well as the transmission and distribution of natural gas. PG&E serves a broad mix of residential, commercial, and industrial customers across urban and rural communities within its California service territory.

PG&E’s operations encompass utility infrastructure planning and construction, grid operations, customer service and energy procurement.