TransAlta (TSE:TA) Sets New 52-Week High at $12.64

TransAlta Co. (TSE:TA) (NYSE:TAC) hit a new 52-week high on Tuesday . The company traded as high as C$12.64 and last traded at C$12.60, with a volume of 145824 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at C$12.51.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the company. National Bankshares boosted their price target on TransAlta from C$14.00 to C$15.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. CIBC lowered their price target on TransAlta from C$16.50 to C$15.50 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on TransAlta from C$16.00 to C$17.00 in a research report on Thursday, September 5th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of C$15.43.

TransAlta Stock Down 1.5 %

The firm has a market cap of C$3.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.66, a P/E/G ratio of -0.07 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 219.87, a current ratio of 0.84 and a quick ratio of 0.62. The stock has a 50-day moving average of C$11.25 and a 200-day moving average of C$9.97.

TransAlta (TSE:TA) (NYSE:TAC) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported C$0.18 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of C$0.07 by C$0.11. TransAlta had a return on equity of 32.01% and a net margin of 19.50%. The firm had revenue of C$582.00 million during the quarter. Sell-side analysts predict that TransAlta Co. will post 0.4504537 EPS for the current fiscal year.

TransAlta Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 1st. Stockholders of record on Sunday, September 1st will be paid a $0.06 dividend. This represents a $0.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.90%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 30th. TransAlta’s payout ratio is 12.63%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Senior Officer Jane Nyla Fedoretz sold 41,378 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of C$11.30, for a total value of C$467,571.40. In related news, Senior Officer Kerry Lynn O’reilly sold 48,833 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of C$10.99, for a total value of C$536,674.67. Also, Senior Officer Jane Nyla Fedoretz sold 41,378 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of C$11.30, for a total transaction of C$467,571.40. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 100,217 shares of company stock worth $1,118,820. Insiders own 0.21% of the company’s stock.

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.