Pacific Gas & Electric Target of Unusually High Options Trading (NYSE:PCG)

Pacific Gas & Electric Co. (NYSE:PCG) was the recipient of some unusual options trading activity on Tuesday. Stock traders acquired 52,975 call options on the company. This represents an increase of 79% compared to the typical daily volume of 29,656 call options.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently commented on PCG. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Pacific Gas & Electric from $20.00 to $21.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 1st. Mizuho set a $21.00 target price on shares of Pacific Gas & Electric in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Pacific Gas & Electric from $17.00 to $18.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, October 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on shares of Pacific Gas & Electric from $22.00 to $21.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, December 12th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Pacific Gas & Electric from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, January 17th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $20.64.

Pacific Gas & Electric Price Performance

PCG traded down $0.08 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $15.11. 8,722,545 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 21,445,035. The company has a market cap of $33.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.70, a PEG ratio of 0.57 and a beta of 0.38. Pacific Gas & Electric has a 12-month low of $12.97 and a 12-month 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. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $15.64 and a 200 day simple moving average of $15.41.

Pacific Gas & Electric Increases Dividend

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

Insider Activity

In other news, Director John O. Larsen bought 7,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 4th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $15.96 per share, with a total value of $119,700.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 18,111 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $289,051.56. This represents a 70.68% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.15% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Pacific Gas & Electric

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Pacific Gas & Electric by 3.0% in the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 58,079,843 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $819,447,000 after acquiring an additional 1,676,093 shares in the last quarter. Quinn Opportunity Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Pacific Gas & Electric by 510.0% in the 2nd quarter. Quinn Opportunity Partners LLC now owns 960,456 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $13,389,000 after purchasing an additional 803,000 shares during the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its position in Pacific Gas & Electric by 3,875.9% in the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 639,689 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $10,280,000 after buying an additional 623,600 shares during the last quarter. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S raised its holdings in shares of Pacific Gas & Electric by 499.7% during the second quarter. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S now owns 433,064 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $6,037,000 after purchasing an additional 360,845 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mediolanum International Funds Ltd raised its position in Pacific Gas & Electric by 49.9% during the third quarter. Mediolanum International Funds Ltd now owns 947,127 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $14,264,000 after acquiring an additional 315,133 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.56% of the company’s stock.

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.