Pinnacle West Capital (NYSE:PNW) Stock: Insider Paula Sims Sells 2,000 Shares

Pinnacle West Capital Corporation (NYSE:PNW) Director Paula Sims sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.44, for a total transaction of $210,880.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 9,032 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $952,334.08. The trade was a 18.13% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link.

Pinnacle West Capital Trading Down 0.8%

NYSE PNW traded down $0.82 on Thursday, reaching $107.09. The stock had a trading volume of 2,312,966 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,281,842. The firm has a market capitalization of $12.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.13, a P/E/G ratio of 3.70 and a beta of 0.48. The company has a quick ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 0.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.35. Pinnacle West Capital Corporation has a 12-month low of $86.18 and a 12-month high of $111.16. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $99.57 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $100.84.

Pinnacle West Capital (NYSE:PNW) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 3rd. The utilities provider reported $3.49 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.32 by $0.17. Pinnacle West Capital had a return on equity of 9.18% and a net margin of 11.59%. The company had revenue of $1.97 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.90 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.39 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 8.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Pinnacle West Capital Corporation will post 4.92 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Pinnacle West Capital Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 2nd will be given a $0.9250 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 2nd. This represents a $3.70 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.5%. This is an increase from Pinnacle West Capital’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.91. Pinnacle West Capital’s dividend payout ratio is presently 69.55%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Pinnacle West Capital

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Pinnacle West Capital during the second quarter worth approximately $703,598,000. Soroban Capital Partners LP lifted its stake in Pinnacle West Capital by 34.0% in the first quarter. Soroban Capital Partners LP now owns 3,854,815 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $388,373,000 after acquiring an additional 977,411 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its holdings in Pinnacle West Capital by 101.3% during the 2nd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,456,941 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $155,893,000 after acquiring an additional 733,069 shares in the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC acquired a new position in Pinnacle West Capital during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $64,952,000. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc purchased a new stake in shares of Pinnacle West Capital in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $61,683,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.51% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PNW has been the topic of several research reports. Scotiabank assumed coverage on shares of Pinnacle West Capital in a research report on Tuesday, September 29th. They set a “sector outperform” rating and a $104.00 price target on the stock. TD Cowen restated a “hold” rating on shares of Pinnacle West Capital in a report on Wednesday, August 12th. Citigroup reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Pinnacle West Capital in a research note on Thursday, October 8th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their target price on shares of Pinnacle West Capital from $129.00 to $109.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, October 5th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets decreased their price target on shares of Pinnacle West Capital from $106.00 to $104.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $103.77.

About Pinnacle West Capital

Pinnacle West Capital Corporation is an energy holding company whose principal subsidiary, Arizona Public Service Company (APS), provides electric service in Arizona. APS generates, transmits and distributes electricity to residential, commercial and industrial customers. APS serves communities across central and northern Arizona, including the Phoenix metropolitan area. Its electricity supply comes from a mix of generating resources, including nuclear, natural gas, coal and renewable energy. Pinnacle West became the parent company of APS in 1985.