TransAlta Co. (TSE:TA) Receives Average Rating of “Buy” from Brokerages

Shares of TransAlta Co. (TSE:TA) (NYSE:TAC) have been assigned a consensus rating of “Buy” from the ten research firms that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12-month target price among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is C$25.00.

A number of analysts recently commented on TA shares. ATB Cormark Capital Markets set a C$28.00 target price on shares of TransAlta and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 10th. National Bank Financial raised their target price on shares of TransAlta from C$22.00 to C$24.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, June 1st. Scotiabank upgraded shares of TransAlta to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 10th. Scotia set a C$27.00 price target on shares of TransAlta and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 10th. Finally, TD set a C$26.00 price target on TransAlta and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 10th.

TransAlta Price Performance

TSE:TA opened at C$19.30 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.61, a current ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 317.20. The business’s 50-day moving average price is C$19.14 and its 200 day moving average price is C$18.22. TransAlta has a 52-week low of C$15.62 and a 52-week high of C$25.03. The firm has a market cap of C$6.10 billion, a P/E ratio of -25.73, a PEG ratio of -0.07 and a beta of 0.75.

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

Insider Buying and Selling at TransAlta

In related news, insider Jane Nyla Fedoretz sold 10,000 shares of TransAlta stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of C$18.25, for a total value of C$182,500.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 49,906 shares in the company, valued at C$910,784.50. The trade was a 16.69% decrease in their position. Also, insider Michael Politeski bought 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 19th. The stock was bought at an average price of C$19.58 per share, for a total transaction of C$195,800.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider directly owned 75,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately C$1,468,500. The trade was a 15.38% increase in their ownership of the stock. Over the last three months, insiders have bought 30,450 shares of company stock valued at $557,548 and have sold 25,000 shares valued at $445,000. Company insiders own 0.21% of the company’s stock.

About TransAlta

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.