Pacific Gas & Electric (NYSE:PCG) Shares Cross Above 50-Day Moving Average - Should You Sell?

Key Points

• PG&E shares moved above their 50-day moving average of $13.36, reaching an intraday high of $13.52 and last trading at $13.375. The stock remains below its 200-day average of $16.20.
• Analysts’ consensus rating is Hold, with a $17.21 average price target; seven rate the shares Buy and nine Hold.
• PG&E reported quarterly EPS of $0.41, slightly below the $0.42 consensus, while revenue of $6.19 billion also missed estimates of $6.82 billion and fell 1% year over year.

Pacific Gas & Electric Co. (NYSE:PCG - Get Free Report)'s stock price passed above its fifty day moving average during trading on Wednesday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $13.36 and traded as high as $13.52. Pacific Gas & Electric shares last traded at $13.3750, with a volume of 28,350,350 shares changing hands.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on Pacific Gas & Electric from $21.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research report on Monday, October 26th. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price target on shares of Pacific Gas & Electric from $19.00 to $14.00 in a research note on Wednesday, October 21st. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Pacific Gas & Electric from $14.00 to $15.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, October 30th. Bank of America increased their price objective on shares of Pacific Gas & Electric from $13.00 to $14.00 in a research report on Tuesday, September 8th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of Pacific Gas & Electric from $18.00 to $17.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, October 12th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Pacific Gas & Electric has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $17.21.

Pacific Gas & Electric Stock Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $35.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.91, a P/E/G ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 0.17. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $13.36 and a 200-day moving average of $16.20. The company has a quick ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.85.

Pacific Gas & Electric (NYSE:PCG - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 22nd. The utilities provider reported $0.41 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.42 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $6.19 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.82 billion. Pacific Gas & Electric had a return on equity of 11.49% and a net margin of 12.00%. The company's revenue was down 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.50 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Pacific Gas & Electric Co. will post 1.65 EPS for the current year.

Pacific Gas & Electric Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 15th. Investors of record on Wednesday, September 30th were issued a dividend of $0.05 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, September 30th. This represents a $0.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.5%. Pacific Gas & Electric's dividend payout ratio is presently 14.81%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Pacific Gas & Electric news, Director John Larsen bought 7,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 30th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $12.20 per share, with a total value of $91,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 36,685 shares in the company, valued at approximately $447,557. This trade represents a 25.70% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director William Fugate sold 6,500 shares of Pacific Gas & Electric stock in a transaction on Friday, September 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $13.76, for a total transaction of $89,440.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 73,530 shares in the company, valued at $1,011,772.80. The trade was a 8.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 0.22% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Pacific Gas & Electric

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in PCG. Legal & General Group Plc bought a new stake in Pacific Gas & Electric in the 2nd quarter valued at $398,915,000. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board acquired a new position in shares of Pacific Gas & Electric in the second quarter valued at $320,820,000. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC acquired a new position in shares of Pacific Gas & Electric in the second quarter valued at $314,855,000. Gallagher Fiduciary Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Pacific Gas & Electric in the second quarter valued at about $300,895,000. Finally, Man Group plc bought a new position in shares of Pacific Gas & Electric in the second quarter valued at about $188,513,000. 78.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Pacific Gas & Electric Company Profile

PG&E Corporation NYSE: PCG is the holding company for Pacific Gas and Electric Company, a regulated utility that provides electricity and natural gas delivery services in Northern and Central California. Its operations include maintaining and operating electric transmission and distribution networks, natural gas pipelines, substations, and other infrastructure used to serve residential, commercial, industrial, and agricultural customers.

Pacific Gas and Electric Company serves a broad portion of California, including the San Francisco Bay Area, the Central Valley, and parts of the northern and central regions of the state.

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