Nuveen Asset Management LLC Has $2.89 Million Stake in TransAlta Co. (NYSE:TAC)

Nuveen Asset Management LLC reduced its stake in shares of TransAlta Co. (NYSE:TAC) (TSE:TA) by 3.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 204,605 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 6,916 shares during the quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC owned 0.07% of TransAlta worth $2,892,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Tobam acquired a new stake in shares of TransAlta during the 4th quarter worth about $46,000. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in shares of TransAlta during the fourth quarter worth approximately $147,000. Private Advisor Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of TransAlta during the fourth quarter worth approximately $150,000. Sage Investment Counsel LLC bought a new position in shares of TransAlta in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $156,000. Finally, DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main bought a new position in shares of TransAlta in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $167,000. 59.00% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

TransAlta Stock Performance

TransAlta stock opened at $9.89 on Tuesday. TransAlta Co. has a 1 year low of $6.78 and a 1 year high of $14.64. The company’s 50-day moving average is $8.96 and its two-hundred day moving average is $10.77. The company has a current ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.94. The company has a market cap of $2.93 billion, a PE ratio of 24.12 and a beta of 0.71.

TransAlta (NYSE:TAC) (TSE:TA) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The utilities provider reported $0.07 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.09 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $526.69 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $509.31 million. TransAlta had a return on equity of 18.47% and a net margin of 6.38%. Equities analysts anticipate that TransAlta Co. will post 0.41 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have commented on TAC shares. Wall Street Zen lowered TransAlta from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of TransAlta in a report on Friday, April 11th. They set a “hold” rating on the stock. Cibc World Mkts upgraded shares of TransAlta from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. CIBC raised shares of TransAlta from a “neutral” rating to an “outperformer” rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $23.00 to $19.50 in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price target on shares of TransAlta from $23.00 to $20.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $19.75.

TransAlta Company 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.