PG&E (NYSE:PCG) Sets New 52-Week Low - Here's Why

PG&E Co. (NYSE:PCG - Get Free Report) reached a new 52-week low during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $16.32 and last traded at $16.50, with a volume of 23857703 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $17.35.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on PCG. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "underweight" rating on shares of PG&E in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Guggenheim lifted their target price on PG&E from $16.00 to $17.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, April 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $22.00 price target on shares of PG&E in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. BMO Capital Markets cut their price objective on shares of PG&E from $23.00 to $22.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Finally, Evercore ISI increased their target price on shares of PG&E from $15.00 to $17.00 and gave the company an "in-line" rating in a research report on Monday, April 28th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, PG&E presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $21.13.

PG&E Price Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $45.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.72, a P/E/G ratio of 1.09 and a beta of 0.70. The business's fifty day moving average is $16.79 and its 200 day moving average is $18.15. The company has a current ratio of 1.05, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.86.

PG&E (NYSE:PCG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The utilities provider reported $0.33 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.35 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $5.98 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.23 billion. PG&E had a net margin of 10.27% and a return on equity of 10.94%. PG&E's revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.37 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that PG&E Co. will post 1.49 EPS for the current year.

PG&E Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st were paid a dividend of $0.025 per share. This represents a $0.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.59%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 31st. PG&E's dividend payout ratio is presently 9.17%.

Insider Transactions at PG&E

In other news, EVP Carla J. Peterman sold 32,519 shares of PG&E stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $17.30, for a total transaction of $562,578.70. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 151,116 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,614,306.80. The trade was a 17.71 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Arno Lockheart Harris acquired 6,389 shares of PG&E stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 20th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $15.66 per share, with a total value of $100,051.74. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 14,864 shares in the company, valued at approximately $232,770.24. This represents a 75.39 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.14% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On PG&E

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in PCG. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its stake in shares of PG&E by 68.3% in the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,543 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 626 shares during the last quarter. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators grew its stake in PG&E by 45.0% in the first quarter. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators now owns 2,173 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 674 shares in the last quarter. Baker Tilly Wealth Management LLC increased its position in PG&E by 4.6% in the 4th quarter. Baker Tilly Wealth Management LLC now owns 16,337 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $330,000 after purchasing an additional 715 shares during the last quarter. Level Four Advisory Services LLC lifted its holdings in shares of PG&E by 7.5% during the 4th quarter. Level Four Advisory Services LLC now owns 11,066 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $223,000 after buying an additional 772 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of PG&E by 1.9% during the 1st quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 42,747 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $738,000 after buying an additional 785 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.56% of the company's stock.

PG&E 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.