Bank of Nova Scotia Sells 3,062 Shares of Pinnacle West Capital Corporation (NYSE:PNW)

Key Points

• The Bank of Nova Scotia reduced its stake in Pinnacle West Capital Corporation by 26.8%, now holding 8,354 shares valued at $796,000.
• Institutional investors own 91.51% of Pinnacle West Capital, with notable increases in holdings from multiple firms including Invesco Ltd. and Two Sigma Advisers LP.
• Pinnacle West Capital reported $1.58 EPS for the latest quarter, meeting consensus estimates, along with a quarterly dividend of $0.895 set to be paid out in September.

Bank of Nova Scotia decreased its position in shares of Pinnacle West Capital Corporation (NYSE:PNW - Free Report) by 26.8% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 8,354 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 3,062 shares during the period. Bank of Nova Scotia's holdings in Pinnacle West Capital were worth $796,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its holdings in Pinnacle West Capital by 26.2% during the 4th quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 29,775 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $2,524,000 after buying an additional 6,183 shares in the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in Pinnacle West Capital by 12.0% during the 1st quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 13,127 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,236,000 after buying an additional 1,411 shares in the last quarter. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. grew its holdings in Pinnacle West Capital by 26.2% during the 1st quarter. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. now owns 5,546 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $528,000 after buying an additional 1,150 shares in the last quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. grew its holdings in Pinnacle West Capital by 8.5% during the 1st quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 4,650 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $443,000 after buying an additional 366 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Amalgamated Bank grew its holdings in Pinnacle West Capital by 1.7% during the 1st quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 22,300 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $2,124,000 after buying an additional 372 shares in the last quarter. 91.51% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have issued reports on PNW. UBS Group reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $98.00 price objective (up from $96.00) on shares of Pinnacle West Capital in a report on Friday, July 11th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Pinnacle West Capital from $95.00 to $98.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Pinnacle West Capital from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Monday, May 5th. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on shares of Pinnacle West Capital from $96.00 to $98.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a report on Thursday. Finally, LADENBURG THALM/SH SH raised shares of Pinnacle West Capital to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $97.11.

Pinnacle West Capital Trading Down 1.2%

NYSE PNW traded down $1.11 on Friday, hitting $92.67. 1,014,063 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,206,722. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25, a quick ratio of 0.34 and a current ratio of 0.52. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $90.47 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $91.11. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.11, a P/E/G ratio of 9.65 and a beta of 0.38. Pinnacle West Capital Corporation has a 52-week low of $81.47 and a 52-week high of $96.50.

Pinnacle West Capital (NYSE:PNW - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported $1.58 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.58. The company had revenue of $1.36 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.35 billion. Pinnacle West Capital had a net margin of 10.96% and a return on equity of 8.45%. Pinnacle West Capital's quarterly revenue was up 3.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.76 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Pinnacle West Capital Corporation will post 5.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Pinnacle West Capital Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 2nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 1st will be given a dividend of $0.895 per share. This represents a $3.58 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.9%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 1st. Pinnacle West Capital's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 73.81%.

Pinnacle West Capital Company Profile

Pinnacle West Capital Corporation, through its subsidiary, provides retail and wholesale electric services primarily in the state of Arizona. The company engages in the generation, transmission, and distribution of electricity using coal, nuclear, gas, oil, and solar generating facilities. Its transmission facilities include overhead lines and underground lines; and distribution facilities consist of overhead lines and underground primary cables.