TransAlta (NYSE:TAC) Upgraded by Scotiabank to Strong-Buy Rating

TransAlta (NYSE:TAC) (TSE:TA) was upgraded by investment analysts at Scotiabank to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report issued on Wednesday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other research firms have also commented on TAC. BMO Capital Markets started coverage on TransAlta in a research note on Wednesday. They issued an “outperform” rating on the stock. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of TransAlta from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “sell (d)” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. National Bank Financial upgraded shares of TransAlta from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 24th. TD Cowen started coverage on shares of TransAlta in a research note on Wednesday. They issued a “buy” rating on the stock. Finally, Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of TransAlta in a research report on Thursday, April 16th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $22.25.

TransAlta Trading Down 0.4%

Shares of NYSE TAC opened at $12.41 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $13.13 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $13.11. The stock has a market cap of $3.69 billion, a P/E ratio of -22.97 and a beta of 0.69. TransAlta has a 52-week low of $10.28 and a 52-week high of $17.88. 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 (NYSE:TAC) (TSE:TA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.04 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.01 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $406.19 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $436.36 million. TransAlta had a negative net margin of 9.46% and a positive return on equity of 9.52%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that TransAlta will post 0.26 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On TransAlta

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of TransAlta by 37.1% during the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,000 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 812 shares in the last quarter. Sage Rhino Capital LLC grew its position in TransAlta by 8.7% during the first quarter. Sage Rhino Capital LLC now owns 11,078 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $145,000 after buying an additional 882 shares during the period. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA increased its holdings in TransAlta by 1.9% during the fourth quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 48,926 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $620,000 after buying an additional 893 shares during the last quarter. Creative Planning raised its position in TransAlta by 2.0% in the third quarter. Creative Planning now owns 52,339 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $715,000 after acquiring an additional 1,003 shares during the period. Finally, Savant Capital LLC raised its position in TransAlta by 10.4% in the fourth quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 16,568 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $209,000 after acquiring an additional 1,566 shares during the period. 59.00% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.