Pacific Gas & Electric (NYSE:PCG) Stock Crosses Below 50 Day Moving Average – Time to Sell?

Pacific Gas & Electric Co. (NYSE:PCG)’s stock price passed below its 50-day moving average during trading on Thursday. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $13.06 and traded as low as $12.85. Pacific Gas & Electric shares last traded at $12.9650, with a volume of 21,393,629 shares.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PCG has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective on shares of Pacific Gas & Electric from $19.00 to $14.00 in a research note on Wednesday, October 21st. HSBC assumed coverage on Pacific Gas & Electric in a research report on Thursday, October 22nd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $15.50 target price on the stock. Mizuho dropped their target price on Pacific Gas & Electric from $16.00 to $14.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, September 3rd. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Pacific Gas & Electric from $20.00 to $21.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 21st. Finally, Bank of America increased their price target on Pacific Gas & Electric from $13.00 to $14.00 in a research report on Tuesday, September 8th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $17.21.

Pacific Gas & Electric Stock Down 1.0%

The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.85. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $13.06 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $16.13. The company has a market capitalization of $34.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.05 and a beta of 0.17.

Pacific Gas & Electric (NYSE:PCG) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 22nd. The utilities provider reported $0.41 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.42 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $6.19 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.82 billion. Pacific Gas & Electric had a return on equity of 11.49% and a net margin of 12.00%. The business’s revenue was down 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.50 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Pacific Gas & Electric Co. will post 1.65 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Pacific Gas & Electric Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 15th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, September 30th were given a dividend of $0.05 per share. This represents a $0.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, September 30th. Pacific Gas & Electric’s payout ratio is 14.81%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Pacific Gas & Electric

In related news, Director John Larsen acquired 7,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 30th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $12.20 per share, for a total transaction of $91,500.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director directly owned 36,685 shares in the company, valued at approximately $447,557. This trade represents a 25.70% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director William Fugate sold 6,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $13.76, for a total transaction of $89,440.00. Following the sale, the director owned 73,530 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,011,772.80. This represents a 8.12% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 0.22% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Pacific Gas & Electric

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Keating Financial Advisory Services Inc. bought a new position in shares of Pacific Gas & Electric during the second quarter worth approximately $28,000. Performa Ltd US LLC bought a new stake in Pacific Gas & Electric in the 3rd quarter valued at $43,000. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Pacific Gas & Electric in the 2nd quarter valued at $57,000. CoreCap Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Pacific Gas & Electric by 13.1% in the 2nd quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC now owns 5,843 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $98,000 after purchasing an additional 677 shares during the period. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc grew its holdings in Pacific Gas & Electric by 19.6% in the 2nd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 6,636 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $112,000 after buying an additional 1,088 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.56% of the company’s stock.

Pacific Gas & Electric Company Profile

Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) is a regulated utility that provides electricity and natural gas to homes and businesses in Northern and Central California. Its services include generating, purchasing, transmitting and distributing electricity, as well as delivering natural gas through its pipeline network. The utility is a subsidiary of PG&E Corporation, whose common stock trades on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol PCG. The company traces its roots to California’s early gas and electric utilities and was incorporated in 1905.