PG&E Co. (NYSE:PCG) Stock Position Lifted by Maryland State Retirement & Pension System

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System raised its holdings in PG&E Co. (NYSE:PCG - Free Report) by 3.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,952,530 shares of the utilities provider's stock after acquiring an additional 63,731 shares during the period. PG&E makes up approximately 0.7% of Maryland State Retirement & Pension System's investment portfolio, making the stock its 23rd largest position. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System owned about 0.07% of PG&E worth $35,204,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Private Advisor Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of PG&E during the 4th quarter valued at about $231,000. Merit Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in PG&E in the 4th quarter valued at about $362,000. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of PG&E in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $86,000. Levin Capital Strategies L.P. increased its holdings in shares of PG&E by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Levin Capital Strategies L.P. now owns 1,461,267 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $26,347,000 after buying an additional 20,638 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Los Angeles Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of PG&E during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $183,000. 78.56% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

PG&E Stock Up 0.3 %

NYSE:PCG traded up $0.06 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $17.73. The company had a trading volume of 9,909,595 shares, compared to its average volume of 15,285,107. PG&E Co. has a 12-month low of $14.71 and a 12-month high of $18.32. The firm has a market capitalization of $51.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.78 and a beta of 1.26. The company has a current ratio of 0.99, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.08. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $16.68 and its 200-day simple moving average is $16.96.

PG&E (NYSE:PCG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The utilities provider reported $0.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.35 by $0.02. PG&E had a return on equity of 11.32% and a net margin of 10.05%. The business had revenue of $5.86 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.60 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.29 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was down 5.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that PG&E Co. will post 1.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

PG&E Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 28th were issued a $0.01 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 27th. This represents a $0.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.23%. PG&E's payout ratio is 3.57%.

Insider Transactions at PG&E

In other PG&E news, CEO Patricia K. Poppe sold 59,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $17.08, for a total value of $1,007,720.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,515,777 shares in the company, valued at $25,889,471.16. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.15% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on PCG shares. StockNews.com raised PG&E from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of PG&E from $18.00 to $19.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 23rd. Barclays increased their target price on shares of PG&E from $20.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, April 26th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on shares of PG&E in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $21.00 price target on the stock. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $19.11.

PG&E Company Profile

PG&E Corporation, through its subsidiary, Pacific Gas and Electric Company, engages in the sale and delivery of electricity and natural gas to customers in northern and central California, the United States. It generates electricity using nuclear, hydroelectric, fossil fuel-fired, fuel cell, and photovoltaic sources.