Analysts Set TransAlta Corporation (NYSE:TAC) Target Price at $24.50

TransAlta Corporation (NYSE:TAC) (TSE:TA) has been assigned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the nine ratings firms that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $24.50.

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. TD Securities reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of TransAlta in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of TransAlta from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 18th. Scotiabank upgraded shares of TransAlta to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 10th. TD Cowen began coverage on TransAlta in a report on Wednesday, June 10th. They set a “buy” rating on the stock. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of TransAlta in a report on Monday, August 3rd.

TransAlta Trading Down 2.4%

TAC stock opened at $12.20 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $3.86 billion, a PE ratio of -67.77 and a beta of 0.70. TransAlta has a one year low of $11.38 and a one year high of $17.88. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $13.17 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $13.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.64, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a current ratio of 0.84.

TransAlta (NYSE:TAC) (TSE:TA) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 31st. The utilities provider reported $0.13 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.11 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $342.85 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $379.54 million. TransAlta had a negative net margin of 2.76% and a positive return on equity of 8.85%. As a group, analysts predict that TransAlta will post 0.21 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

TransAlta Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 1st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 1st will be given a $0.07 dividend. This represents a $0.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 1st. TransAlta’s payout ratio is currently -111.11%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On TransAlta

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Persistent Asset Partners Ltd purchased a new stake in TransAlta during the 2nd quarter valued at about $29,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of TransAlta during the fourth quarter valued at $37,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in TransAlta by 37.1% during the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,000 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 812 shares during the period. Ritter Alpha LP purchased a new stake in shares of TransAlta during the 4th quarter valued at about $131,000. Finally, Sage Rhino Capital LLC lifted its position in TransAlta by 8.7% during the first quarter. Sage Rhino Capital LLC now owns 11,078 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $145,000 after purchasing an additional 882 shares during the period. 59.00% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.