Pampa Energia (NYSE:PAM) Downgraded to Hold Rating by Zacks Research

Pampa Energia (NYSE:PAM) was downgraded by equities researchers at Zacks Research from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report released on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other analysts have also commented on PAM. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Pampa Energia from $97.50 to $101.50 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, June 1st. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Pampa Energia from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, June 20th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Pampa Energia in a research note on Friday, June 12th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Pampa Energia presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $103.83.

Pampa Energia Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:PAM opened at $85.20 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a quick ratio of 1.78 and a current ratio of 2.04. The firm has a market cap of $4.58 billion, a PE ratio of 10.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 0.97. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $83.68 and its 200-day simple moving average is $83.19. Pampa Energia has a one year low of $54.95 and a one year high of $94.50.

Pampa Energia (NYSE:PAM) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 31st. The utilities provider reported $4.00 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Pampa Energia had a return on equity of 12.23% and a net margin of 20.31%.The company had revenue of $573.00 million for the quarter. As a group, equities analysts predict that Pampa Energia will post 10.13 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Pampa Energia

In other Pampa Energia news, Director Marcos Marcelo Mindlin sold 1,800,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3.48, for a total transaction of $6,264,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 24,971,973 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $86,902,466.04. This represents a 6.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Gustavo Mariani bought 25,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 7th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $81.40 per share, with a total value of $2,035,000.00. Following the acquisition, the vice president directly owned 1,566,184 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $127,487,377.60. This represents a 1.62% increase in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. In the last three months, insiders have purchased 1,710,694 shares of company stock valued at $7,701,005 and have sold 7,157,000 shares valued at $24,696,070. 55.52% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Pampa Energia

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. BW Gestao de Investimentos Ltda. acquired a new stake in Pampa Energia during the fourth quarter worth $3,105,000. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Pampa Energia during the 1st quarter worth about $1,569,000. Hsbc Holdings PLC increased its position in shares of Pampa Energia by 77.6% during the 4th quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 46,788 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $4,058,000 after purchasing an additional 20,438 shares during the last quarter. Fundamenta Capital S.A. purchased a new stake in shares of Pampa Energia in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $23,496,000. Finally, Wealth High Governance Capital Ltda acquired a new position in shares of Pampa Energia in the 4th quarter worth approximately $4,861,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 12.77% of the company’s stock.

Pampa Energia Company Profile

Pampa Energía SA is Argentina’s largest independent energy company, with integrated operations spanning electricity generation, transmission, distribution and oil and gas activities. The company holds a diversified portfolio of thermal and hydroelectric power plants, along with growing investments in renewable energy projects, serving both domestic and regional markets.

In its electricity business, Pampa Energía develops and operates plants that supply energy to Argentina’s power grid.