TransAlta (NYSE:TAC) Sets New 52-Week High at $9.45

TransAlta Co. (NYSE:TAC) (TSE:TA) hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $9.45 and last traded at $9.44, with a volume of 553247 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $9.21.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, StockNews.com downgraded shares of TransAlta from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday.

TransAlta Stock Up 2.4 %

The company has a 50-day moving average of $8.13 and a two-hundred day moving average of $7.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.43, a current ratio of 0.84 and a quick ratio of 0.75. The company has a market capitalization of $2.85 billion, a PE ratio of 5.94 and a beta of 0.91.

TransAlta (NYSE:TAC) (TSE:TA) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The utilities provider reported $0.13 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 company had revenue of $425.37 million for the quarter. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.17 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that TransAlta Co. will post 0.75 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

TransAlta Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 1st. Investors of record on Sunday, September 1st will be issued a $0.044 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 30th. This is a boost from TransAlta’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.04. This represents a $0.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.87%. TransAlta’s payout ratio is currently 10.97%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On TransAlta

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of TransAlta during the fourth quarter worth $33,000. NBC Securities Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of TransAlta by 156.3% during the 1st quarter. NBC Securities Inc. now owns 4,100 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 2,500 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. grew its position in shares of TransAlta by 1,381.5% during the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 4,237 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 3,951 shares in the last quarter. Mather Group LLC. bought a new stake in shares of TransAlta in the second quarter worth about $64,000. Finally, Evergreen Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of TransAlta in the second quarter worth about $72,000. 59.00% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other 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.