Pacific Gas & Electric (NYSE:PCG) EVP Carla Peterman Sells 31,786 Shares

Pacific Gas & Electric Co. (NYSE:PCG) EVP Carla Peterman sold 31,786 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $18.31, for a total value of $582,001.66. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 195,091 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,572,116.21. This represents a 14.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website.

Pacific Gas & Electric Stock Up 1.7%

NYSE PCG traded up $0.31 during trading on Monday, reaching $18.45. 24,283,003 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 22,098,514. The company has a current ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.84. Pacific Gas & Electric Co. has a fifty-two week low of $12.97 and a fifty-two week high of $19.16. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $16.86 and its 200-day simple moving average is $16.13. The firm has a market capitalization of $40.55 billion, a PE ratio of 15.64, a P/E/G ratio of 0.69 and a beta of 0.33.

Pacific Gas & Electric (NYSE:PCG) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The utilities provider reported $0.36 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.36. The company had revenue of $6.80 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.05 billion. Pacific Gas & Electric had a return on equity of 11.28% and a net margin of 10.84%.During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.31 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Pacific Gas & Electric Co. will post 1.49 EPS for the current year.

Pacific Gas & Electric Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 31st will be given a dividend of $0.05 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 31st. This represents a $0.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.1%. Pacific Gas & Electric’s payout ratio is presently 16.95%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of Pacific Gas & Electric from $22.00 to $21.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, December 12th. UBS Group upgraded shares of Pacific Gas & Electric from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 9th. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Pacific Gas & Electric from $21.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. Wall Street Zen cut Pacific Gas & Electric from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 14th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Pacific Gas & Electric from $23.00 to $24.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 20th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $21.09.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Pacific Gas & Electric

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in PCG. Tobam acquired a new stake in Pacific Gas & Electric in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Captrust Financial Advisors increased its stake in shares of Pacific Gas & Electric by 59.5% during the 4th quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 468,091 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $7,522,000 after purchasing an additional 174,564 shares during the last quarter. Van Lanschot Kempen Investment Management N.V. raised its holdings in shares of Pacific Gas & Electric by 96.5% during the 4th quarter. Van Lanschot Kempen Investment Management N.V. now owns 110,915 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,782,000 after purchasing an additional 54,474 shares in the last quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. raised its holdings in shares of Pacific Gas & Electric by 42.9% during the 4th quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 9,454 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $152,000 after purchasing an additional 2,836 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Syon Capital LLC lifted its stake in shares of Pacific Gas & Electric by 9.3% in the 4th quarter. Syon Capital LLC now owns 56,014 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $900,000 after purchasing an additional 4,783 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 78.56% of the company’s stock.

About Pacific Gas & Electric

Pacific Gas & Electric (NYSE: PCG) is an investor-owned utility holding company whose principal operating subsidiary, Pacific Gas and Electric Company, provides electricity and natural gas service in northern and central California. The company’s core activities include the generation, procurement, transmission and distribution of electric power, as well as the transmission and distribution of natural gas. PG&E serves a broad mix of residential, commercial, and industrial customers across urban and rural communities within its California service territory.

PG&E’s operations encompass utility infrastructure planning and construction, grid operations, customer service and energy procurement.