TD Lowers TransAlta (TSE:TA) Price Target to C$26.00

Key Points

• TD cuts price target — TD lowered its target on TransAlta from C$27.00 to C$26.00 while retaining a "buy" rating, implying about a 49.6% upside from the prior close.
• Analyst consensus — Eight analysts rate the stock Buy and one rates it Hold, giving a MarketBeat consensus of "Moderate Buy" with an average target of C$24.44, though individual targets range roughly from C$18 to C$28.
• Current price, fundamentals & insider selling — Shares trade at C$17.38 with negative EPS and net margin and a very high debt-to-equity (320.51), and insiders have sold ~70,953 shares (~$1.26M) in the past 90 days.

TransAlta (TSE:TA - Get Free Report) NYSE: TAC had its price target lowered by analysts at TD from C$27.00 to C$26.00 in a research note issued on Thursday,BayStreet.CA reports. The brokerage presently has a "buy" rating on the stock. TD's price target would indicate a potential upside of 49.60% from the stock's previous close.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently commented on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price target on shares of TransAlta from C$27.00 to C$22.00 in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. National Bank Financial raised TransAlta from a "hold" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a C$22.00 price objective for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 24th. ATB Cormark Capital Markets boosted their target price on TransAlta from C$27.00 to C$28.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 24th. Finally, Desjardins cut their price target on TransAlta from C$19.00 to C$18.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 10th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of C$24.44.

TransAlta Stock Performance

Shares of TSE:TA traded down C$0.07 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching C$17.38. The company had a trading volume of 627,496 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,323,278. The stock has a market cap of C$5.16 billion, a P/E ratio of -27.16, a P/E/G ratio of -0.07 and a beta of 0.54. The company's 50 day moving average price is C$17.76 and its 200 day moving average price is C$18.81. The company has a current ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 320.51. TransAlta has a 52-week low of C$11.56 and a 52-week high of C$25.03.

TransAlta (TSE:TA - Get Free Report) NYSE: TAC last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The company reported C$0.06 EPS for the quarter. The business had revenue of C$560.00 million for the quarter. TransAlta had a negative net margin of 5.74% and a negative return on equity of 8.84%.

Insider Activity at TransAlta

In other TransAlta news, insider Jane Nyla Fedoretz sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of C$17.45, for a total transaction of C$174,500.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 103,953 shares in the company, valued at C$1,813,979.85. This represents a 8.78% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Also, insider Christopher Douglas Fralick sold 36,453 shares of TransAlta stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of C$17.90, for a total value of C$652,508.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 46,939 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately C$840,208.10. This trade represents a 43.71% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 70,953 shares of company stock valued at $1,262,409. 0.21% of the stock is owned by insiders.

About TransAlta

TransAlta owns, operates and develops a diverse fleet of electrical power generation assets in Canada, the United States and Australia with a focus on long-term shareholder value. TransAlta provides municipalities, medium and large industries, businesses and utility customers with affordable, energy efficient and reliable power. Today, TransAlta is one of Canada's largest producers of wind power and Alberta's largest producer of thermal generation and hydro-electric power. For over 114 years, TransAlta has been a responsible operator and a proud member of the communities where we operate and where our employees work and live.

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