TransAlta (TSE:TA) Reaches New 52-Week High – What’s Next?

TransAlta Co. (TSE:TA) (NYSE:TAC) reached a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as C$14.79 and last traded at C$14.74, with a volume of 265127 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at C$14.31.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently issued reports on TA. National Bankshares boosted their target price on shares of TransAlta from C$14.00 to C$15.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. CIBC lowered their price target on TransAlta from C$16.50 to C$15.50 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. Desjardins lowered shares of TransAlta from a “moderate buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on TransAlta from C$16.00 to C$17.00 in a research note on Thursday, September 5th. Finally, TD Securities increased their target price on TransAlta from C$16.00 to C$18.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of C$16.17.

TransAlta Trading Down 5.0 %

The business’s 50-day simple moving average is C$13.45 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is C$11.14. The company has a current ratio of 0.84, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 219.87. The company has a market capitalization of C$4.33 billion, a PE ratio of 7.65, a PEG ratio of -0.07 and a beta of 0.93.

TransAlta Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 1st. Shareholders of record on Sunday, December 1st will be paid a dividend of $0.06 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 29th. This represents a $0.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.65%. TransAlta’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 12.63%.

Insider Buying and Selling at TransAlta

In other TransAlta news, Senior Officer Kerry Lynn O’reilly sold 48,833 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of C$10.99, for a total transaction of C$536,674.67. In related news, Senior Officer Jane Nyla Fedoretz sold 20,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of C$13.92, for a total transaction of C$278,400.00. Also, Senior Officer Kerry Lynn O’reilly sold 48,833 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of C$10.99, for a total transaction of C$536,674.67. Insiders have sold a total of 78,839 shares of company stock valued at $929,648 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.21% of the company’s stock.

About TransAlta

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.