Pacific Gas & Electric Co. (NYSE:PCG) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Shares of Pacific Gas & Electric Co. (NYSE:PCG) have earned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the fifteen brokerages that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price target among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $20.6364.

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. TD Cowen assumed coverage on shares of Pacific Gas & Electric in a research report on Thursday, October 16th. They set a “buy” rating and a $21.00 price objective on the stock. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Pacific Gas & Electric from $20.00 to $21.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 1st. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Pacific Gas & Electric to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Pacific Gas & Electric from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $21.00 price objective on shares of Pacific Gas & Electric and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 22nd.

Pacific Gas & Electric Stock Up 0.3%

PCG opened at $15.95 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.81. Pacific Gas & Electric has a 1-year low of $12.97 and a 1-year high of $21.72. The company has a market capitalization of $35.05 billion, a PE ratio of 13.40, a PEG ratio of 0.66 and a beta of 0.58. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $15.59 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $15.45.

Pacific Gas & Electric (NYSE:PCG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 15th. The utilities provider reported $0.30 earnings per share for the quarter. Pacific Gas & Electric had a net margin of 10.93% and a return on equity of 11.10%. The business had revenue of $5.80 billion for the quarter. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Pacific Gas & Electric will post 1.49 EPS for the current year.

Pacific Gas & Electric Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, October 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 30th were paid a dividend of $0.025 per share. This represents a $0.10 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, September 30th. Pacific Gas & Electric’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 8.40%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Pacific Gas & Electric

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Root Financial Partners LLC purchased a new position in Pacific Gas & Electric during the third quarter valued at $27,000. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its stake in Pacific Gas & Electric by 826.2% during the third quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,945 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 1,735 shares in the last quarter. Costello Asset Management INC purchased a new position in Pacific Gas & Electric during the first quarter valued at $31,000. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC purchased a new position in Pacific Gas & Electric during the first quarter valued at $39,000. Finally, Quent Capital LLC purchased a new position in Pacific Gas & Electric during the third quarter valued at $44,000. 78.56% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Pacific Gas & Electric

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.