TransAlta (NYSE:TAC) Upgraded at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of TransAlta (NYSE:TAC) (TSE:TA) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report released on Tuesday morning.

TAC has been the topic of several other reports. Scotiabank cut TransAlta from a “sector outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. CIBC cut TransAlta from a “sector outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Desjardins reissued a “hold” rating on shares of TransAlta in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. Finally, Cibc World Mkts cut TransAlta from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold”.

TransAlta Stock Performance

TransAlta stock opened at $10.40 on Tuesday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $13.00 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $10.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.94, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a current ratio of 0.74. The stock has a market cap of $3.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.10 and a beta of 0.83. TransAlta has a fifty-two week low of $5.94 and a fifty-two week high of $14.64.

TransAlta Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Saturday, March 1st will be given a $0.0423 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 28th. This represents a $0.17 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.63%. TransAlta’s dividend payout ratio is currently 48.65%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On TransAlta

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Tobam bought a new position in TransAlta in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $46,000. Financial Management Professionals Inc. bought a new position in TransAlta in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $42,000. Quantbot Technologies LP bought a new position in TransAlta in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $61,000. Ballentine Partners LLC bought a new position in TransAlta in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $145,000. Finally, Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC bought a new position in TransAlta in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $147,000. 59.00% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

TransAlta Company Profile

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.