Quantbot Technologies LP Acquires New Position in TransAlta Corporation $TAC

Quantbot Technologies LP acquired a new position in shares of TransAlta Corporation (NYSE:TAC) (TSE:TA) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 109,555 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,515,000.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of TAC. Artemis Investment Management LLP grew its stake in shares of TransAlta by 34.2% in the 4th quarter. Artemis Investment Management LLP now owns 1,818,379 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $22,999,000 after buying an additional 463,266 shares during the period. Tacita Capital Inc acquired a new stake in shares of TransAlta during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $3,073,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its position in shares of TransAlta by 6.0% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,629,540 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $21,343,000 after buying an additional 91,665 shares during the period. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership purchased a new stake in shares of TransAlta during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $5,448,000. Finally, Capital Innovations LLC acquired a new position in TransAlta in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,259,000. 59.00% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

TransAlta Stock Performance

Shares of TAC stock opened at $12.11 on Tuesday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $13.27 and its 200-day moving average price is $13.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.64, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a current ratio of 0.84. TransAlta Corporation has a one year low of $11.38 and a one year high of $17.88. The firm has a market cap of $3.83 billion, a P/E ratio of -67.25 and a beta of 0.70.

TransAlta (NYSE:TAC) (TSE:TA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 31st. The utilities provider reported $0.13 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.11 by $0.02. TransAlta had a negative net margin of 2.76% and a positive return on equity of 8.85%. The firm had revenue of $342.85 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $379.54 million. As a group, equities research analysts predict that TransAlta Corporation will post 0.21 EPS for the current year.

TransAlta Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 1st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 1st will be given a dividend of $0.07 per share. This represents a $0.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 1st. TransAlta’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -111.11%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently weighed in on TAC shares. TD Cowen initiated coverage on TransAlta in a research report on Wednesday, June 10th. They issued a “buy” rating for the company. TD Securities restated a “buy” rating on shares of TransAlta in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of TransAlta in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Scotiabank upgraded TransAlta to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 10th. Finally, Zacks Research raised TransAlta from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, August 17th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $24.50.

About TransAlta

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.