Royal Bank Of Canada Reiterates Outperform Rating for TransAlta (NYSE:TAC)

TransAlta (NYSE:TAC) (TSE:TA)‘s stock had its “outperform” rating restated by investment analysts at Royal Bank Of Canada in a note issued to investors on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. They presently have a $24.00 target price on the utilities provider’s stock. Royal Bank Of Canada’s price target would indicate a potential upside of 83.58% from the stock’s previous close.

Other research analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of TransAlta in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Zacks Research upgraded shares of TransAlta from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, December 5th. National Bank Financial raised shares of TransAlta from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, TD Securities restated a “buy” rating on shares of TransAlta in a report on Wednesday, December 10th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $21.33.

TransAlta Trading Up 2.5%

Shares of NYSE TAC opened at $13.07 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.54. TransAlta has a one year low of $7.82 and a one year high of $17.88. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $12.97 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $13.84. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.88 billion, a PE ratio of -27.81 and a beta of 0.77.

TransAlta (NYSE:TAC) (TSE:TA) last issued its earnings results on Friday, February 27th. The utilities provider reported ($0.04) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.05 by ($0.09). The business had revenue of $436.10 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $493.39 million. TransAlta had a negative net margin of 7.51% and a positive return on equity of 10.00%. As a group, analysts predict that TransAlta will post 0.41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of TransAlta

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd bought a new stake in TransAlta in the fourth quarter worth approximately $37,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of TransAlta by 37.1% during the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,000 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 812 shares during the last quarter. FNY Investment Advisers LLC bought a new position in shares of TransAlta during the 4th quarter valued at $50,000. Warren Street Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of TransAlta during the 4th quarter valued at $129,000. Finally, Ritter Alpha LP acquired a new stake in shares of TransAlta in the 4th quarter valued at $131,000. 59.00% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About TransAlta

TransAlta Corporation, originally founded in 1909 as Calgary Power Company Ltd., is a publicly traded energy company specializing in the development, ownership and operation of power generation and transmission assets. Headquartered in Calgary, Alberta, TransAlta has grown from its early hydroelectric roots into a diversified energy provider with a multi-fuel generating fleet.

The company’s core business activities encompass power generation, asset management and energy trading services.