TransAlta Co. (TSE:TA) Receives Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Shares of TransAlta Co. (TSE:TA) (NYSE:TAC) have earned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the eight analysts that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation and seven have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12-month price target among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is C$24.67.

TA has been the topic of a number of research reports. ATB Cormark Capital Markets upped their target price on shares of TransAlta from C$27.00 to C$28.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 24th. TD reduced their price objective on shares of TransAlta from C$27.00 to C$26.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Desjardins dropped their target price on shares of TransAlta from C$19.00 to C$18.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. Finally, 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 research report on Monday.

TransAlta Trading Down 10.4%

TSE:TA opened at C$18.00 on Friday. TransAlta has a 52 week low of C$13.80 and a 52 week high of C$25.03. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is C$18.15 and its 200 day moving average price is C$18.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 317.20, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a current ratio of 0.76. The company has a market capitalization of C$5.36 billion, a P/E ratio of -24.00, a P/E/G ratio of -0.07 and a beta of 0.69.

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

Insider Activity

In other TransAlta news, insider Jane Nyla Fedoretz sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of C$17.45, for a total transaction of C$174,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 74,906 shares of the company’s stock, valued at C$1,307,109.70. This represents a 11.78% decrease in their position. Also, insider Christopher Douglas Fralick sold 36,453 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of C$17.90, for a total transaction of C$652,508.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 46,939 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately C$840,208.10. This trade represents a 43.71% decrease in their position. Insiders sold 95,953 shares of company stock worth $1,707,409 over the last quarter. 0.21% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.