TransAlta (NYSE:TAC) Coverage Initiated by Analysts at TD Cowen

Equities research analysts at TD Cowen began coverage on shares of TransAlta (NYSE:TACGet Free Report) (TSE:TA) in a note issued to investors on Wednesday. The brokerage set a “buy” rating on the utilities provider’s stock.

Other research analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. TD Securities restated a “buy” rating on shares of TransAlta in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Weiss Ratings downgraded TransAlta from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “sell (d)” rating in a report on Thursday, May 7th. BMO Capital Markets initiated coverage on TransAlta in a research note on Wednesday. They set an “outperform” rating on the stock. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce restated an “outperform” rating on shares of TransAlta in a report on Thursday, April 16th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $24.00 target price on shares of TransAlta in a research report on Tuesday, March 24th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, TransAlta has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $22.25.

Read Our Latest Analysis on TAC

TransAlta Trading Down 0.3%

Shares of TransAlta stock traded down $0.04 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $12.42. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 110,093 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,524,105. 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 debt-to-equity ratio of 6.61, a quick ratio of 0.70 and a current ratio of 0.76. TransAlta has a twelve month low of $10.28 and a twelve month high of $17.88. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $13.14 and a 200-day moving average of $13.12.

TransAlta (NYSE:TACGet Free Report) (TSE:TA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.01 by $0.03. TransAlta had a positive return on equity of 9.52% and a negative net margin of 9.46%.The firm had revenue of $406.19 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $436.36 million. Research analysts forecast that TransAlta will post 0.26 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of TransAlta by 2.3% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 10,949,384 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $149,569,000 after buying an additional 248,027 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can increased its stake in shares of TransAlta by 15.1% during the third quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 10,425,309 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $142,373,000 after buying an additional 1,369,830 shares during the period. Oaktree Capital Management LP raised its holdings in TransAlta by 5.4% in the third quarter. Oaktree Capital Management LP now owns 6,415,253 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $87,648,000 after acquiring an additional 330,000 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its holdings in TransAlta by 493.5% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 100,317 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,371,000 after acquiring an additional 83,414 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Aventail Capital Group LP purchased a new position in TransAlta in the third quarter worth approximately $38,633,000. 59.00% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About TransAlta

(Get Free Report)

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.

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Analyst Recommendations for TransAlta (NYSE:TAC)

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