PG&E Target of Unusually High Options Trading (NYSE:PCG)

PG&E Co. (NYSE:PCG) was the target of some unusual options trading on Monday. Stock traders bought 52,145 put options on the company. This represents an increase of approximately 145% compared to the average daily volume of 21,251 put options.

Insider Activity at PG&E

In other PG&E news, EVP Carla J. Peterman sold 32,519 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $17.30, for a total value of $562,578.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 151,116 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,614,306.80. The trade was a 17.71% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.14% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On PG&E

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in PCG. Costello Asset Management INC bought a new position in shares of PG&E during the first quarter worth approximately $31,000. True Wealth Design LLC increased its stake in shares of PG&E by 1,233.6% during the fourth quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 1,827 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 1,690 shares during the period. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators increased its stake in shares of PG&E by 45.0% during the first quarter. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators now owns 2,173 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 674 shares during the period. Colonial Trust Co SC increased its stake in shares of PG&E by 563.0% during the fourth quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC now owns 1,916 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 1,627 shares during the period. Finally, Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC bought a new position in shares of PG&E during the first quarter worth approximately $39,000. Institutional investors own 78.56% of the company’s stock.

PG&E Stock Performance

PCG opened at $14.58 on Tuesday. PG&E has a 52-week low of $14.56 and a 52-week high of $21.72. The firm has a market capitalization of $38.99 billion, a PE ratio of 12.67, a PEG ratio of 1.09 and a beta of 0.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.86, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a current ratio of 1.05. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $16.90 and its 200 day simple moving average is $17.45.

PG&E (NYSE:PCG) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The utilities provider reported $0.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.35 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $5.98 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.23 billion. PG&E had a return on equity of 10.94% and a net margin of 10.27%. The business’s revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.37 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that PG&E will post 1.49 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

PG&E Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 30th will be paid a $0.025 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 30th. This represents a $0.10 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.69%. PG&E’s dividend payout ratio is 9.17%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

PCG has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets decreased their target price on PG&E from $23.00 to $22.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on PG&E from $15.00 to $17.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research report on Monday, April 28th. Barclays reduced their price objective on PG&E from $23.00 to $22.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Morgan Stanley set a $18.00 price objective on PG&E and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $24.00 price objective on shares of PG&E in a research report on Friday, April 25th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, PG&E currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $20.75.

PG&E Company Profile

PG&E Corp. operates as a holding company, which engages in generation, transmission, and distribution of electricity and natural gas to customers. It specializes in energy, utility, power, gas, electricity, solar and sustainability. The company was founded in 1995 and is headquartered in Oakland, CA.