TransAlta Co. (TSE:TA) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Buy” from Brokerages

Shares of TransAlta Co. (TSE:TA) (NYSE:TAC) have been assigned an average recommendation of “Buy” from the ten brokerages that are covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation, eight have given a buy recommendation and one has issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average 1-year price objective among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is C$25.00.

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Royal Bank Of Canada set a C$24.00 price objective on TransAlta and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 10th. TD set a C$26.00 target price on TransAlta and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 10th. Scotia set a C$27.00 target price on TransAlta and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 10th. ATB Cormark Capital Markets set a C$28.00 price target on TransAlta and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 10th. Finally, National Bank Financial lifted their price target on shares of TransAlta from C$22.00 to C$24.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, June 1st.

TransAlta Price Performance

TA stock opened at C$18.61 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of C$5.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -24.81, a PEG ratio of -0.07 and a beta of 0.75. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is C$18.93 and its two-hundred day moving average price is C$18.15. The company has a current ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 317.20. TransAlta has a 12-month low of C$15.62 and a 12-month high of C$25.03.

TransAlta (TSE:TA) (NYSE:TAC) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The company reported C$0.06 earnings per share for the quarter. The company had revenue of C$560.00 million during the quarter. TransAlta had a negative net margin of 7.73% and a negative return on equity of 11.56%.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Michael Politeski acquired 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, June 19th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of C$19.58 per share, for a total transaction of C$195,800.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider directly owned 75,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately C$1,468,500. This represents a 15.38% increase in their position. Also, insider Jane Nyla Fedoretz sold 10,000 shares of TransAlta stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of C$17.45, for a total value of C$174,500.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 74,906 shares in the company, valued at approximately C$1,307,109.70. The trade was a 11.78% decrease in their ownership of the stock. In the last quarter, insiders have purchased 30,450 shares of company stock worth $557,548 and have sold 25,000 shares worth $445,000. 0.21% of the stock is owned by insiders.

About TransAlta

TransAlta owns, operates and develops a diverse fleet of electrical power generation assets in Canada, the United States and Australia with a focus on long-term shareholder value. TransAlta provides municipalities, medium and large industries, businesses and utility customers with affordable, energy efficient and reliable power. Today, TransAlta is one of Canada’s largest producers of wind power and Alberta’s largest producer of thermal generation and hydro-electric power. For over 114 years, TransAlta has been a responsible operator and a proud member of the communities where we operate and where our employees work and live.