PG&E Target of Unusually Large Options Trading (NYSE:PCG)

PG&E Co. (NYSE:PCG) was the recipient of some unusual options trading on Wednesday. Investors acquired 21,058 put options on the stock. This represents an increase of 146% compared to the average volume of 8,557 put options.

PG&E Stock Down 3.7 %

Shares of PCG stock opened at $19.24 on Thursday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $20.45 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $19.48. The stock has a market cap of $50.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.03, a P/E/G ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 0.98. PG&E has a 12 month low of $15.94 and a 12 month high of $21.72. The company has a current ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.02.

PG&E (NYSE:PCG) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The utilities provider reported $0.37 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.32 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $5.94 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.58 billion. PG&E had a return on equity of 12.51% and a net margin of 11.11%. PG&E’s revenue for the quarter was up .9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.24 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that PG&E will post 1.36 earnings per share for the current year.

PG&E Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be paid a $0.025 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $0.10 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.52%. This is an increase from PG&E’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.01. PG&E’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 7.81%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on PG&E in a report on Monday, October 14th. They set a “buy” rating and a $24.00 target price for the company. Barclays decreased their target price on PG&E from $25.00 to $24.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. UBS Group decreased their price objective on PG&E from $26.00 to $24.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Bank of America assumed coverage on PG&E in a report on Thursday, September 12th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $24.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on PG&E from $19.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $22.80.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Patricia K. Poppe sold 55,555 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.66, for a total transaction of $1,147,766.30. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 1,460,222 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $30,168,186.52. This represents a 3.67 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.15% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in PCG. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its position in shares of PG&E by 68.3% during the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,543 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 626 shares in the last quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC grew its position in shares of PG&E by 3.1% during the second quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 22,458 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $392,000 after purchasing an additional 666 shares in the last quarter. Commerce Bank grew its position in shares of PG&E by 1.5% during the third quarter. Commerce Bank now owns 47,051 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $930,000 after purchasing an additional 712 shares in the last quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC grew its position in shares of PG&E by 11.4% during the third quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 7,501 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $157,000 after purchasing an additional 769 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Alta Advisers Ltd grew its position in shares of PG&E by 19.5% during the second quarter. Alta Advisers Ltd now owns 4,900 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $86,000 after purchasing an additional 800 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 78.56% of the company’s stock.

PG&E Company Profile

PG&E Corporation, through its subsidiary, Pacific Gas and Electric Company, engages in the sale and delivery of electricity and natural gas to customers in northern and central California, the United States. It generates electricity using nuclear, hydroelectric, fossil fuel-fired, fuel cell, and photovoltaic sources.