Tacita Capital Inc Takes $3.07 Million Position in TransAlta Corporation $TAC

Tacita Capital Inc acquired a new position in TransAlta Corporation (NYSE:TAC) (TSE:TA) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 222,601 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $3,073,000. TransAlta accounts for 1.7% of Tacita Capital Inc’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 15th largest position.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in TAC. Persistent Asset Partners Ltd bought a new stake in TransAlta during the second quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd bought a new stake in shares of TransAlta during the 4th quarter valued at $37,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in TransAlta by 37.1% in the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,000 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $38,000 after buying an additional 812 shares in the last quarter. Warren Street Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of TransAlta in the fourth quarter worth about $129,000. Finally, Ritter Alpha LP bought a new stake in TransAlta during the 4th quarter worth approximately $131,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 59.00% of the company’s stock.

TransAlta Trading Down 0.7%

Shares of TAC stock opened at $12.38 on Thursday. TransAlta Corporation has a 12-month low of $11.38 and a 12-month high of $17.88. The company has a current ratio of 0.84, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.64. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $13.34 and its 200-day moving average price is $13.16. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -68.80 and a beta of 0.70.

TransAlta (NYSE:TAC) (TSE:TA) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 31st. The utilities provider reported $0.13 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.11 by $0.02. TransAlta had a positive return on equity of 8.85% and a negative net margin of 2.76%.The company had revenue of $342.85 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $379.54 million. Equities research analysts predict that TransAlta Corporation will post 0.21 EPS for the current fiscal year.

TransAlta Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 1st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 1st will be issued a dividend of $0.07 per share. This represents a $0.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 1st. TransAlta’s dividend payout ratio is -111.11%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on TAC. BMO Capital Markets reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of TransAlta in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. TD Securities restated a “buy” rating on shares of TransAlta in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Scotiabank raised TransAlta to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 10th. Zacks Research upgraded TransAlta from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday. Finally, TD Cowen assumed coverage on TransAlta in a research note on Wednesday, June 10th. They issued a “buy” rating for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $24.50.

TransAlta Company Profile

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.