TransAlta (NYSE:TAC) Earns Buy Rating from Analysts at Desjardins

Desjardins assumed coverage on shares of TransAlta (NYSE:TAC) (TSE:TA) in a report published on Wednesday, MarketBeat Ratings reports. The firm issued a buy rating on the utilities provider’s stock.

Separately, StockNews.com cut TransAlta from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th.

TransAlta Trading Down 1.5 %

TransAlta stock opened at $10.27 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $3.06 billion, a PE ratio of 6.80 and a beta of 0.92. TransAlta has a 12 month low of $5.94 and a 12 month high of $10.73. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $9.83 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $8.15. The company has a current ratio of 0.84, a quick ratio of 0.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.43.

TransAlta (NYSE:TAC) (TSE:TA) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The utilities provider reported $0.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.05 by $0.08. TransAlta had a net margin of 18.41% and a return on equity of 47.71%. The firm had revenue of $425.37 million for the quarter. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.17 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that TransAlta will post 0.69 earnings per share for the current year.

TransAlta Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 1st. Investors of record on Sunday, December 1st will be issued a $0.044 dividend. This represents a $0.18 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.71%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 29th. TransAlta’s payout ratio is presently 11.26%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On TransAlta

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in TAC. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of TransAlta by 25.3% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 10,498,451 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $87,242,000 after purchasing an additional 2,116,907 shares in the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI lifted its position in shares of TransAlta by 9.0% in the second quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 3,618,296 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $25,267,000 after acquiring an additional 299,594 shares in the last quarter. Intact Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of TransAlta by 5.6% in the second quarter. Intact Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,912,250 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $13,557,000 after acquiring an additional 101,200 shares in the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company boosted its stake in shares of TransAlta by 22.3% in the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 929,631 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $6,582,000 after acquiring an additional 169,219 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Acadian Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of TransAlta by 71.9% during the first quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 643,988 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $4,131,000 after purchasing an additional 269,444 shares in the last quarter. 59.00% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.