TransAlta Corporation (NYSE:TAC) Given Consensus Rating of "Moderate Buy" by Analysts

Shares of TransAlta Corporation (NYSE:TAC - Get Free Report) TSE: TA have earned a consensus recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the five ratings firms that are covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, two have given a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $19.75.

TAC has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of TransAlta from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, June 12th. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their price objective on shares of TransAlta from $23.00 to $20.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 8th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of TransAlta from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, June 14th.

TransAlta Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:TAC traded down $0.04 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $10.68. The company had a trading volume of 1,211,044 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,269,074. The company has a fifty day moving average of $9.73 and a two-hundred day moving average of $10.70. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.16 billion, a P/E ratio of -533.48 and a beta of 0.74. TransAlta has a 12 month low of $6.78 and a 12 month high of $14.64. The company has a current ratio of 0.84, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.19.

TransAlta (NYSE:TAC - Get Free Report) TSE: TA last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The utilities provider reported $0.07 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.09 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $526.69 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $509.31 million. TransAlta had a negative return on equity of 1.64% and a net margin of 0.01%. Equities research analysts forecast that TransAlta will post 0.41 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. NBC Securities Inc. increased its stake in shares of TransAlta by 145,600.0% in the first quarter. NBC Securities Inc. now owns 2,914 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 2,912 shares during the period. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd increased its stake in shares of TransAlta by 48,666.7% in the first quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 4,389 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $41,000 after buying an additional 4,380 shares during the period. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC purchased a new position in shares of TransAlta in the fourth quarter worth $147,000. Private Advisor Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of TransAlta in the fourth quarter worth $150,000. Finally, Tobam increased its stake in shares of TransAlta by 239.2% in the first quarter. Tobam now owns 10,943 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $102,000 after buying an additional 7,717 shares during the period. 59.00% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About TransAlta

TransAlta Corporation engages in the development, production, and sale of electric energy. It operates through Hydro, Wind and Solar, Gas, Energy Transition, and Energy Marketing segments. The Hydro segment holds interest of approximately 922 megawatts (MW) of owned hydroelectric generating capacity located in Alberta, British Columbia, and Ontario.