Millennium Management LLC Trims Stock Position in TransAlta Co. (NYSE:TAC)

Millennium Management LLC lessened its stake in TransAlta Co. (NYSE:TAC - Free Report) TSE: TA by 34.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,505,034 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 2,890,679 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC owned about 1.85% of TransAlta worth $77,831,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in TAC. Tobam purchased a new stake in TransAlta during the fourth quarter worth $46,000. Ballentine Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of TransAlta in the fourth quarter worth about $145,000. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in shares of TransAlta during the 4th quarter worth about $147,000. Private Advisor Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of TransAlta during the 4th quarter worth about $150,000. Finally, Sage Investment Counsel LLC acquired a new stake in shares of TransAlta during the 4th quarter valued at about $156,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 59.00% of the company's stock.

TransAlta Price Performance

Shares of NYSE TAC traded up $0.08 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $9.04. The company's stock had a trading volume of 211,513 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,652,319. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $9.02 and a two-hundred day moving average of $10.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.94, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a current ratio of 0.74. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.04 and a beta of 0.71. TransAlta Co. has a 1-year low of $6.78 and a 1-year high of $14.64.

TransAlta (NYSE:TAC - Get Free Report) TSE: TA last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 7th. The utilities provider reported $0.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.09 by ($0.02). TransAlta had a net margin of 6.38% and a return on equity of 18.47%. The business had revenue of $526.69 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $509.31 million. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that TransAlta Co. will post 0.41 EPS for the current fiscal year.

TransAlta Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 1st. Shareholders of record on Sunday, June 1st will be issued a $0.0458 dividend. This is a boost from TransAlta's previous quarterly dividend of $0.04. This represents a $0.18 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.03%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 30th. TransAlta's dividend payout ratio is presently -900.00%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on TAC shares. Cibc World Mkts upgraded TransAlta from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their target price on TransAlta from $23.00 to $20.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 8th. CIBC raised shares of TransAlta from a "neutral" rating to an "outperformer" rating and cut their price target for the stock from $23.00 to $19.50 in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. StockNews.com cut shares of TransAlta from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of TransAlta in a research report on Friday, April 11th. They issued a "hold" rating on the stock. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, TransAlta has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $19.75.

About TransAlta

TransAlta Corporation engages in the development, production, and sale of electric energy. It operates through Hydro, Wind and Solar, Gas, Energy Transition, and Energy Marketing segments. The Hydro segment holds interest of approximately 922 megawatts (MW) of owned hydroelectric generating capacity located in Alberta, British Columbia, and Ontario.