TransAlta (NYSE:TAC) Issues Quarterly Earnings Results

TransAlta (NYSE:TAC) (TSE:TA) released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday. The utilities provider reported $0.13 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.05 by $0.08, Zacks reports. TransAlta had a positive return on equity of 8.85% and a negative net margin of 2.76%. The business had revenue of $376.43 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $366.40 million.

Here are the key takeaways from TransAlta’s conference call:

• Strong third-quarter performance supported by fleet availability of 92.6%, Adjusted EBITDA of CAD 264 million, and free cash flow of CAD 93 million. Management reaffirmed its 2026 guidance, citing effective hedging and asset optimization despite weak Alberta spot prices.
• TransAlta completed the acquisition of two Colorado natural-gas peaking facilities for approximately US$1 billion, adding 318 MW and an expected US$110 million of annual Adjusted EBITDA. The company also expects the assets to provide a platform for further growth in the Western U.S.
• The company expanded the potential Boreal Technology Hub data-center project near Keephills to up to 1.6 GW and received approval for the Keephills 1 redevelopment. TransAlta said customer interest in Alberta is increasing as power constraints and data-center moratoriums emerge in other North American markets.
• TransAlta will mothball Battle River units 4 and 5 and extend the Sundance 6 outage because of low current capacity factors, while preserving the assets’ long-term optionality for data-center demand and potential contracts. The company expects its remaining Alberta fleet to operate at higher utilization.
• Definitive agreements for the Boreal project may slip into early 2027 because TransAlta is still awaiting clarity from AESO on the amount and operating terms of underutilized generation that can serve the site. Management also noted that repowering projects face turbine lead times of more than five years.

TransAlta Stock Performance

Shares of TAC stock traded up $0.66 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $13.87. The stock had a trading volume of 1,033,943 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,605,211. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.64, a current ratio of 0.84 and a quick ratio of 0.77. The firm has a market cap of $4.39 billion, a PE ratio of -76.98 and a beta of 0.73. TransAlta has a fifty-two week low of $11.38 and a fifty-two week high of $17.06. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $12.42 and its 200-day simple moving average is $12.94.

TransAlta Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 1st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 1st will be given a dividend of C$0.07 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 1st. This represents a $0.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.0%. TransAlta’s dividend payout ratio is presently -111.11%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently weighed in on TAC. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of TransAlta in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Zacks Research upgraded shares of TransAlta from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, August 17th. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce restated an “outperform” rating on shares of TransAlta in a research note on Friday, July 17th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised TransAlta from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a report on Thursday, October 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $24.50.

About TransAlta

TransAlta Corporation is a Canada-based power generation and wholesale marketing company headquartered in Calgary, Alberta. The company develops, owns and operates a diversified portfolio of electricity-generating facilities, including hydroelectric, wind, solar, natural gas and coal-fired power assets.

TransAlta supplies electricity to utilities, commercial and industrial customers, and wholesale markets. Its activities include power generation, energy marketing, asset management and the development of renewable energy projects.