TransAlta (NYSE:TAC) Trading 6.3% Higher – Still a Buy?

TransAlta Corporation (NYSE:TAC) (TSE:TA) traded up 6.3% during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as $14.01 and last traded at $13.8450. 1,614,246 shares were traded during trading, an increase of 5% from the average session volume of 1,531,616 shares. The stock had previously closed at $13.03.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently commented on the company. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of TransAlta in a report on Monday, November 10th. TD Securities restated a “buy” rating on shares of TransAlta in a research report on Wednesday, December 10th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of TransAlta in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Zacks Research raised shares of TransAlta from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, December 5th. Finally, National Bank Financial cut shares of TransAlta from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 3rd. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, TransAlta presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $20.00.

TransAlta Trading Up 5.6%

The business has a 50 day moving average of $12.88 and a 200-day moving average of $13.76. The stock has a market cap of $4.08 billion, a PE ratio of -28.50 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.22.

TransAlta Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Sunday, March 1st will be issued a $0.065 dividend. This represents a $0.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 27th. TransAlta’s dividend payout ratio is -39.58%.

Institutional Trading of TransAlta

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Rubric Capital Management LP raised its holdings in TransAlta by 32.9% in the 2nd quarter. Rubric Capital Management LP now owns 15,948,451 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $172,084,000 after acquiring an additional 3,948,451 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of TransAlta during the fourth quarter worth $45,298,000. Sculptor Capital LP purchased a new stake in shares of TransAlta in the fourth quarter valued at $37,958,000. Bank of Montreal Can increased its stake in TransAlta by 27.5% in the fourth quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 13,295,335 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $168,163,000 after purchasing an additional 2,870,026 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Aventail Capital Group LP acquired a new stake in TransAlta in the 3rd quarter worth about $38,633,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 59.00% of the company’s stock.

TransAlta Company Profile

TransAlta Corporation, originally founded in 1909 as Calgary Power Company Ltd., is a publicly traded energy company specializing in the development, ownership and operation of power generation and transmission assets. Headquartered in Calgary, Alberta, TransAlta has grown from its early hydroelectric roots into a diversified energy provider with a multi-fuel generating fleet.

The company’s core business activities encompass power generation, asset management and energy trading services.