PG&E (NYSE:PCG) Cut to Neutral at UBS Group

PG&E (NYSE:PCG) was downgraded by research analysts at UBS Group from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday, MarketBeat Ratings reports. They currently have a $19.00 target price on the utilities provider’s stock, down from their prior target price of $22.00. UBS Group’s target price suggests a potential upside of 10.50% from the company’s previous close.

PCG has been the topic of several other research reports. Morgan Stanley cut PG&E from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $20.00 to $16.50 in a report on Friday, February 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated an “overweight” rating and set a $22.00 price objective on shares of PG&E in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Mizuho raised their price objective on PG&E from $24.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 27th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on PG&E from $21.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, Guggenheim cut PG&E from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, PG&E presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $22.05.

PG&E Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:PCG opened at $17.20 on Wednesday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $16.17 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $18.81. The stock has a market cap of $45.93 billion, a PE ratio of 14.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.09 and a beta of 1.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.86, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a current ratio of 1.05. PG&E has a one year low of $14.99 and a one year high of $21.72.

PG&E (NYSE:PCG) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The utilities provider reported $0.31 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.31. The firm had revenue of $6.63 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.29 billion. PG&E had a return on equity of 10.94% and a net margin of 10.27%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.47 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that PG&E will post 1.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Arno Lockheart Harris acquired 6,389 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $15.66 per share, with a total value of $100,051.74. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 14,864 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $232,770.24. This trade represents a 75.39 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Carla J. Peterman sold 32,521 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $16.37, for a total value of $532,368.77. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 183,635 shares in the company, valued at $3,006,104.95. This trade represents a 15.05 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.15% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in PCG. Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its position in PG&E by 3.2% in the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 803,682 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $15,889,000 after purchasing an additional 24,973 shares during the period. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of PG&E during the third quarter worth about $292,000. Empowered Funds LLC increased its position in shares of PG&E by 8.9% during the third quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 35,482 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $701,000 after acquiring an additional 2,904 shares during the last quarter. Pathstone Holdings LLC increased its position in shares of PG&E by 9.6% during the third quarter. Pathstone Holdings LLC now owns 117,624 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,326,000 after acquiring an additional 10,276 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Caprock Group LLC increased its position in shares of PG&E by 8.7% during the third quarter. Caprock Group LLC now owns 26,654 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $527,000 after acquiring an additional 2,129 shares during the last quarter. 78.56% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.