TransAlta (NYSE:TAC) Posts Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Estimates By $0.08 EPS

TransAlta (NYSE:TAC) (TSE:TA) released its earnings results on Tuesday. The utilities provider reported $0.13 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.05 by $0.08, Zacks reports. TransAlta had a negative net margin of 2.76% and a positive return on equity of 8.85%.

TransAlta Trading Up 2.5%

NYSE TAC traded up $0.32 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $13.09. The company had a trading volume of 686,688 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,601,406. The company has a current ratio of 0.84, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.64. TransAlta has a one year low of $11.38 and a one year high of $17.48. The company has a market cap of $4.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -73.02 and a beta of 0.73. The company’s fifty day moving average is $12.40 and its 200-day moving average is $12.94.

TransAlta Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 1st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 1st will be given a dividend of C$0.07 per share. This represents a $0.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 1st. TransAlta’s payout ratio is presently -105.56%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on TAC shares. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce restated an “outperform” rating on shares of TransAlta in a research report on Friday, July 17th. Weiss Ratings upgraded TransAlta from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 8th. Zacks Research raised TransAlta from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, August 17th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets restated an “outperform” rating on shares of TransAlta in a report on Monday, August 3rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $24.50.

TransAlta Company Profile

TransAlta Corporation is a Canada-based power generation and wholesale marketing company headquartered in Calgary, Alberta. The company develops, owns and operates a diversified portfolio of electricity-generating facilities, including hydroelectric, wind, solar, natural gas and coal-fired power assets.

TransAlta supplies electricity to utilities, commercial and industrial customers, and wholesale markets. Its activities include power generation, energy marketing, asset management and the development of renewable energy projects.