2,665,037 Shares in TransAlta Corporation $TAC Bought by AustralianSuper Pty Ltd

AustralianSuper Pty Ltd purchased a new stake in TransAlta Corporation (NYSE:TAC) (TSE:TA) during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 2,665,037 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $36,395,000. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd owned about 0.90% of TransAlta at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Sage Rhino Capital LLC bought a new stake in TransAlta in the third quarter valued at approximately $139,000. Savant Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of TransAlta in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $127,000. Ballentine Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of TransAlta in the 2nd quarter valued at $134,000. Fox Run Management L.L.C. acquired a new stake in shares of TransAlta during the second quarter worth $140,000. Finally, Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in shares of TransAlta during the second quarter worth $159,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 59.00% of the company’s stock.

TransAlta Price Performance

Shares of TAC opened at $13.93 on Thursday. The business’s fifty day moving average is $13.20 and its 200 day moving average is $13.62. TransAlta Corporation has a 12-month low of $7.82 and a 12-month high of $17.88. The company has a quick ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.22. The stock has a market cap of $4.13 billion, a P/E ratio of -29.01 and a beta of 0.75.

TransAlta (NYSE:TAC) (TSE:TA) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 6th. The utilities provider reported ($0.01) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.06 by ($0.07). The business had revenue of $441.57 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $558.84 million. TransAlta had a positive return on equity of 3.00% and a negative net margin of 7.39%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that TransAlta Corporation will post 0.41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

TransAlta Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Sunday, March 1st will be paid a dividend of $0.065 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 27th. This represents a $0.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.9%. TransAlta’s payout ratio is -39.58%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently issued reports on TAC. Scotiabank restated an “outperform” rating on shares of TransAlta in a report on Monday, October 6th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of TransAlta in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. TD Securities reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of TransAlta in a research note on Wednesday, December 10th. CIBC reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of TransAlta in a report on Monday, October 20th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded TransAlta from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, December 5th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $19.88.

TransAlta Profile

TransAlta Corporation, originally founded in 1909 as Calgary Power Company Ltd., is a publicly traded energy company specializing in the development, ownership and operation of power generation and transmission assets. Headquartered in Calgary, Alberta, TransAlta has grown from its early hydroelectric roots into a diversified energy provider with a multi-fuel generating fleet.

The company’s core business activities encompass power generation, asset management and energy trading services.