TransAlta (NYSE:TAC) Lowered to “Sector Perform” Rating by Scotiabank

Scotiabank lowered shares of TransAlta (NYSE:TAC) (TSE:TA) from a sector outperform rating to a sector perform rating in a report issued on Thursday morning, Marketbeat reports.

Several other equities research analysts also recently weighed in on the company. Desjardins reissued a “hold” rating on shares of TransAlta in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. CIBC cut shares of TransAlta from a “sector outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. StockNews.com lowered shares of TransAlta from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, January 4th. Finally, Cibc World Mkts downgraded shares of TransAlta from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold”.

TransAlta Stock Performance

Shares of TAC opened at $13.48 on Thursday. TransAlta has a 12 month low of $5.94 and a 12 month high of $14.64. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $13.01 and a 200-day moving average price of $10.50. 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 firm has a market cap of $4.01 billion, a PE ratio of 36.44 and a beta of 0.84.

TransAlta Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Saturday, March 1st will be issued a dividend of $0.0423 per share. This represents a $0.17 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.26%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 28th. TransAlta’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 48.65%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On TransAlta

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Rubric Capital Management LP lifted its stake in TransAlta by 20.0% during the 3rd quarter. Rubric Capital Management LP now owns 5,622,961 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $58,254,000 after acquiring an additional 935,803 shares during the period. FMR LLC lifted its position in TransAlta by 9.8% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 4,593,023 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $47,613,000 after purchasing an additional 408,184 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP acquired a new position in TransAlta during the third quarter valued at $998,000. Polar Asset Management Partners Inc. acquired a new stake in TransAlta during the 3rd quarter worth about $518,000. Finally, Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio purchased a new position in shares of TransAlta during the 3rd quarter valued at about $1,812,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 59.00% 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.