TransAlta (TSE:TA) Stock Price Expected to Rise, Desjardins Analyst Says

TransAlta (TSE:TA) (NYSE:TAC) had its price target upped by analysts at Desjardins from C$18.00 to C$18.50 in a research report issued on Wednesday,BayStreet.CA reports. The brokerage presently has a “hold” rating on the stock. Desjardins’ price objective would indicate a potential upside of 5.84% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other research firms have also commented on TA. National Bank Financial raised their price target on TransAlta from C$22.00 to C$24.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, June 1st. ATB Cormark Capital Markets set a C$28.00 price target on TransAlta and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday. Royal Bank Of Canada set a C$24.00 price target on TransAlta and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday. Scotia set a C$27.00 price target on TransAlta and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, TD dropped their price objective on TransAlta from C$27.00 to C$26.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, TransAlta presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of C$24.95.

TransAlta Stock Performance

Shares of TransAlta stock traded up C$0.08 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching C$17.48. The company had a trading volume of 1,132,181 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,452,348. TransAlta has a one year low of C$14.07 and a one year high of C$25.03. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of C$18.12 and a 200 day simple moving average of C$18.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 317.20, a current ratio of 0.76 and a quick ratio of 0.62. The firm has a market cap of C$5.21 billion, a PE ratio of -23.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of -0.07 and a beta of 0.69.

TransAlta (TSE:TA) (NYSE:TAC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The company reported C$0.06 EPS for the quarter. TransAlta had a negative return on equity of 11.56% and a negative net margin of 7.73%.The firm had revenue of C$560.00 million during the quarter.

Insider Buying and Selling at TransAlta

In other TransAlta news, insider Christopher Douglas Fralick sold 36,453 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of C$17.90, for a total value of C$652,508.70. Following the sale, the insider owned 46,939 shares of the company’s stock, valued at C$840,208.10. This trade represents a 43.71% decrease in their position. Also, insider Michael Politeski purchased 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, June 5th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of C$18.15 per share, for a total transaction of C$181,500.00. Following the acquisition, the insider owned 65,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately C$1,179,750. This represents a 18.18% increase in their ownership of the stock. In the last 90 days, insiders have acquired 20,450 shares of company stock valued at $361,748 and have sold 95,953 shares valued at $1,707,409. Insiders own 0.21% of the company’s stock.

TransAlta Company Profile

TransAlta owns, operates and develops a diverse fleet of electrical power generation assets in Canada, the United States and Australia with a focus on long-term shareholder value. TransAlta provides municipalities, medium and large industries, businesses and utility customers with affordable, energy efficient and reliable power. Today, TransAlta is one of Canada’s largest producers of wind power and Alberta’s largest producer of thermal generation and hydro-electric power. For over 114 years, TransAlta has been a responsible operator and a proud member of the communities where we operate and where our employees work and live.