TransAlta (TSE:TA) Trading Down 15.3% – Here’s Why

TransAlta Co. (TSE:TA) (NYSE:TAC)’s stock price was down 15.3% during trading on Thursday . The company traded as low as C$19.13 and last traded at C$20.17. Approximately 2,088,843 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 20% from the average daily volume of 1,738,203 shares. The stock had previously closed at C$23.80.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on TA shares. ATB Capital lifted their price objective on TransAlta from C$18.00 to C$20.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 5th. TD Securities lifted their price objective on TransAlta from C$20.00 to C$27.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 28th. CIBC boosted their price target on TransAlta from C$20.00 to C$26.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, October 20th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on TransAlta from C$20.00 to C$27.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 14th. Finally, National Bankshares boosted their price target on TransAlta from C$16.00 to C$17.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of C$23.00.

TransAlta Stock Performance

The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of C$20.46 and a 200 day simple moving average of C$16.74. The company has a market cap of C$6.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -39.11, a PEG ratio of -0.07 and a beta of 0.74. The company has a quick ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 0.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 229.66.

About TransAlta

TransAlta is an independent power producer based in Alberta, Canada. The company operates a diverse and growing fleet of electrical power generation assets in Canada, the United States, and Australia consisting of hydro, wind, solar, battery storage, gas and energy transition facilities. The majority of the company’s revenues are derived from the sale of generation capacity, electricity, thermal energy, environmental attributes, and byproducts of power generation.