TransAlta Corporation (NYSE:TAC) Stock Has Average Price Target of $24.50 According to Brokerages

Key Points

• Analyst sentiment is moderately bullish: Nine brokerages give TransAlta a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating, with six buys, two holds, and one strong buy. The average 12-month price target is $24.50 versus a share price of $13.02.
• TransAlta reported quarterly earnings of $0.13 per share, exceeding the $0.11 consensus estimate, though revenue of $342.85 million fell short of the $379.54 million forecast. Analysts expect full-year earnings of approximately $0.21 per share.
• The company pays a quarterly dividend of C$0.07, equivalent to a 2.2% annualized yield, while institutional investors own approximately 59% of the stock.

Shares of TransAlta Corporation (NYSE:TAC - Get Free Report) TSE: TA have received a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" from the nine ratings firms that are covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $24.50.

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on TAC shares. Weiss Ratings raised shares of TransAlta from a "sell (d+)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a research note on Thursday. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce restated an "outperform" rating on shares of TransAlta in a report on Friday, July 17th. BMO Capital Markets restated an "outperform" rating on shares of TransAlta in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of TransAlta from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, August 17th.

TransAlta Stock Down 0.9%

TAC opened at $13.02 on Tuesday. The business's fifty day moving average is $12.29 and its two-hundred day moving average is $12.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.64, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a current ratio of 0.84. The company has a market cap of $4.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -72.30 and a beta of 0.75. TransAlta has a one year low of $11.38 and a one year high of $17.88.

TransAlta (NYSE:TAC - Get Free Report) TSE: TA last posted its earnings results on Friday, July 31st. The utilities provider reported $0.13 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.11 by $0.02. TransAlta had a positive return on equity of 8.85% and a negative net margin of 2.76%. The company had revenue of $342.85 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $379.54 million. Analysts anticipate that TransAlta will post 0.21 EPS for the current fiscal year.

TransAlta Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 1st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 1st were given a C$0.07 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 1st. This represents a $0.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.2%. TransAlta's dividend payout ratio is currently -111.11%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of TransAlta in the second quarter worth $159,000. State Street Corp lifted its position in shares of TransAlta by 5.1% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,250,024 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $17,338,000 after acquiring an additional 60,658 shares in the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company boosted its stake in shares of TransAlta by 3.9% during the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 290,774 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $4,015,000 after acquiring an additional 10,957 shares during the last quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP boosted its stake in shares of TransAlta by 222.0% during the second quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP now owns 50,683 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $701,000 after acquiring an additional 34,945 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Allianz Asset Management GmbH boosted its stake in shares of TransAlta by 5.7% during the second quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 17,971 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $249,000 after acquiring an additional 963 shares during the last quarter. 59.00% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

TransAlta Company Profile

TransAlta Corporation is a Canada-based power generation and wholesale marketing company headquartered in Calgary, Alberta. The company develops, owns, and operates electricity-generating facilities and supplies power to utilities, commercial customers, industrial users, and wholesale markets.

TransAlta's generating portfolio includes hydroelectric, wind, solar, natural gas, and energy storage assets. The company has also historically operated coal-fired power plants, although it has been transitioning away from coal and expanding its renewable and lower-emission generation capabilities.

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