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

TD Cowen initiated coverage on shares of TransAlta (NYSE:TAC) (TSE:TA) in a note issued to investors on Wednesday. The brokerage set a “buy” rating on the utilities provider’s stock.

TAC has been the topic of several other reports. BMO Capital Markets assumed coverage on shares of TransAlta in a research report on Wednesday. They issued an “outperform” rating for the company. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of TransAlta from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “sell (d)” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. National Bank Financial raised shares of TransAlta from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 24th. TD Securities reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of TransAlta in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of TransAlta in a report on Thursday, April 16th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, TransAlta presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $22.25.

TransAlta Stock Down 0.3%

Shares of NYSE TAC traded down $0.04 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $12.42. 110,093 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,524,105. TransAlta has a 1 year low of $10.28 and a 1 year high of $17.88. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $13.14 and a 200 day moving average of $13.12. The stock has a market cap of $3.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -22.99 and a beta of 0.69. The company has a quick ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.61.

TransAlta (NYSE:TAC) (TSE:TA) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.04 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.01 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $406.19 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $436.36 million. TransAlta had a negative net margin of 9.46% and a positive return on equity of 9.52%. On average, research analysts expect that TransAlta will post 0.26 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On TransAlta

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Rubric Capital Management LP lifted its holdings in TransAlta by 11.5% in the 4th quarter. Rubric Capital Management LP now owns 17,781,325 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $224,756,000 after purchasing an additional 1,832,874 shares in the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can grew its holdings in TransAlta by 27.5% in the 4th quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 13,295,335 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $168,163,000 after buying an additional 2,870,026 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of TransAlta by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 11,123,833 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $140,694,000 after acquiring an additional 174,449 shares during the last quarter. Oaktree Capital Management LP raised its holdings in shares of TransAlta by 5.4% during the 3rd quarter. Oaktree Capital Management LP now owns 6,415,253 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $87,648,000 after acquiring an additional 330,000 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of TransAlta during the 4th quarter worth $45,298,000. 59.00% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.