Pacific Gas & Electric Sees Unusually High Options Volume (NYSE:PCG)

Key Points

• Pacific Gas & Electric Co. saw a significant rise in put options trading, with investors acquiring 102,063 put options, a 55% increase compared to the average daily volume.
• The company reported $0.31 earnings per share for the last quarter, missing estimates of $0.33, alongside a revenue of $5.90 billion, below analyst expectations of $6.37 billion.
• Analyst ratings for Pacific Gas & Electric show a consensus of "Hold", with a target price averaging $20.55, though seven analysts have rated the stock as a Buy.

Pacific Gas & Electric Co. (NYSE:PCG - Get Free Report) was the recipient of some unusual options trading on Wednesday. Investors acquired 102,063 put options on the stock. This represents an increase of approximately 55% compared to the average daily volume of 65,840 put options.

Pacific Gas & Electric Stock Performance

Shares of PCG stock traded down $0.07 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $14.91. 3,180,207 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 23,398,920. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $14.47 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $15.68. The stock has a market capitalization of $39.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.66, a P/E/G ratio of 1.08 and a beta of 0.57. Pacific Gas & Electric has a 12-month low of $12.97 and a 12-month high of $21.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.81, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a current ratio of 0.94.

Pacific Gas & Electric (NYSE:PCG - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The utilities provider reported $0.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.33 by ($0.02). Pacific Gas & Electric had a return on equity of 10.13% and a net margin of 9.95%.The company had revenue of $5.90 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.37 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.31 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was down 1.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Pacific Gas & Electric has set its FY 2025 guidance at 1.480-1.520 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Pacific Gas & Electric will post 1.49 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on PCG shares. UBS Group set a $19.00 price target on Pacific Gas & Electric in a research report on Friday, August 29th. Mizuho increased their price objective on Pacific Gas & Electric from $20.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, May 19th. Zacks Research upgraded Pacific Gas & Electric from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, August 18th. Argus upgraded Pacific Gas & Electric to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, June 16th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reiterated an "underweight" rating on shares of Pacific Gas & Electric in a research report on Thursday, August 21st. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $20.55.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Pacific Gas & Electric

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in PCG. Sessa Capital IM L.P. acquired a new position in shares of Pacific Gas & Electric during the 1st quarter worth approximately $320,984,000. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board raised its position in shares of Pacific Gas & Electric by 352.3% during the 1st quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 19,172,519 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $329,384,000 after purchasing an additional 14,933,364 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Pacific Gas & Electric by 317.2% during the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 16,464,333 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $280,305,000 after purchasing an additional 12,518,011 shares during the last quarter. ATLAS Infrastructure Partners UK Ltd. raised its position in shares of Pacific Gas & Electric by 193.4% during the 1st quarter. ATLAS Infrastructure Partners UK Ltd. now owns 10,428,328 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $179,159,000 after purchasing an additional 6,873,576 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Zimmer Partners LP raised its position in shares of Pacific Gas & Electric by 84.9% during the 4th quarter. Zimmer Partners LP now owns 12,661,324 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $255,506,000 after purchasing an additional 5,814,624 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.56% of the company's stock.

Pacific Gas & Electric Company Profile

PG&E Corp. operates as a holding company, which engages in generation, transmission, and distribution of electricity and natural gas to customers. It specializes in energy, utility, power, gas, electricity, solar and sustainability. The company was founded in 1995 and is headquartered in Oakland, CA.

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