Legal & General Group Plc Invests $3.73 Million in TransAlta Corporation $TAC

Key Points

• Legal & General Group Plc acquired 269,484 TransAlta shares worth approximately $3.73 million during the second quarter, giving it about a 0.09% stake. Institutional investors collectively own 59% of the company.
• TransAlta reported quarterly EPS of $0.13, beating the $0.11 analyst consensus, although revenue of $342.85 million fell short of the $379.54 million estimate. Shares recently traded at $11.98, near their 52-week low.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.07, equivalent to $0.28 annually and a 2.3% yield. Analysts maintain a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating with an average price target of $24.50, despite one recent downgrade to “Sell.”

Legal & General Group Plc acquired a new position in shares of TransAlta Corporation (NYSE:TAC - Free Report) TSE: TA in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 269,484 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $3,727,000. Legal & General Group Plc owned approximately 0.09% of TransAlta at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in TransAlta by 37.1% during the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,000 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 812 shares during the last quarter. Sage Rhino Capital LLC grew its position in TransAlta by 8.7% during the 1st quarter. Sage Rhino Capital LLC now owns 11,078 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $145,000 after acquiring an additional 882 shares during the last quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA increased its stake in TransAlta by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 48,926 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $620,000 after purchasing an additional 893 shares during the period. Creative Planning increased its stake in TransAlta by 2.0% in the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 52,339 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $715,000 after purchasing an additional 1,003 shares during the period. Finally, Savant Capital LLC lifted its position in TransAlta by 10.4% in the fourth quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 16,568 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $209,000 after purchasing an additional 1,566 shares during the last quarter. 59.00% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

TransAlta Trading Up 1.4%

Shares of TransAlta stock opened at $11.98 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $3.79 billion, a PE ratio of -66.55 and a beta of 0.70. TransAlta Corporation has a 1 year low of $11.38 and a 1 year high of $17.88. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $12.98 and a 200 day moving average price of $13.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.64, a current ratio of 0.84 and a quick ratio of 0.77.

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

TransAlta Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 1st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 1st will be issued 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 dividend payout ratio is presently -111.11%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

TAC has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. TD Cowen assumed coverage on shares of TransAlta in a research report on Wednesday, June 10th. They set a "buy" rating on the stock. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of TransAlta in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of TransAlta from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 18th. Scotiabank raised TransAlta to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 10th. Finally, Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of TransAlta in a research report on Friday, July 17th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $24.50.

TransAlta 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.

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