Metis Global Partners LLC Buys New Shares in TransAlta Co. (NYSE:TAC)

Metis Global Partners LLC bought a new position in TransAlta Co. (NYSE:TAC) (TSE:TA) in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm bought 34,706 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $360,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Financial Management Professionals Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of TransAlta during the third quarter worth about $42,000. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of TransAlta by 1,381.5% in the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 4,237 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 3,951 shares during the last quarter. Mather Group LLC. acquired a new stake in shares of TransAlta in the second quarter worth $64,000. Evergreen Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of TransAlta during the second quarter worth $72,000. Finally, Janney Montgomery Scott LLC acquired a new position in TransAlta during the first quarter valued at $66,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 59.00% of the company’s stock.

TransAlta Stock Performance

TAC opened at $10.31 on Tuesday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $10.12 and a 200 day moving average price of $8.44. TransAlta Co. has a 1 year low of $5.94 and a 1 year high of $11.10. The stock has a market cap of $3.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.84 and a beta of 0.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.94, a current ratio of 0.74 and a quick ratio of 0.67.

TransAlta Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 1st. Stockholders of record on Sunday, December 1st will be paid a dividend of $0.044 per share. This represents a $0.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.71%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 29th. TransAlta’s payout ratio is currently 45.95%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have weighed in on TAC. StockNews.com lowered TransAlta from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Desjardins reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of TransAlta in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th.

TransAlta Profile

TransAlta Corporation engages in the development, production, and sale of electric energy. It operates through Hydro, Wind and Solar, Gas, Energy Transition, and Energy Marketing segments. The Hydro segment holds interest of approximately 922 megawatts (MW) of owned hydroelectric generating capacity located in Alberta, British Columbia, and Ontario.