Cibc World Market Inc. Trims Stake in TransAlta Co. (NYSE:TAC)

Cibc World Market Inc. lowered its holdings in TransAlta Co. (NYSE:TAC) (TSE:TA) by 23.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,782,617 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 556,828 shares during the period. Cibc World Market Inc.’s holdings in TransAlta were worth $25,202,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Blue Trust Inc. increased its position in shares of TransAlta by 56.5% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 28,275 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $400,000 after purchasing an additional 10,211 shares during the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC grew its stake in TransAlta by 1,096.2% in the 4th quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 259,257 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $3,668,000 after buying an additional 237,584 shares in the last quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of TransAlta in the 4th quarter worth $145,000. Artemis Investment Management LLP purchased a new stake in shares of TransAlta during the 4th quarter valued at $7,139,000. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. grew its position in TransAlta by 190.6% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 147,669 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,550,000 after acquiring an additional 96,856 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 59.00% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Cibc World Mkts downgraded TransAlta from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. StockNews.com raised TransAlta from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday. Desjardins reissued a “hold” rating on shares of TransAlta in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Scotiabank cut shares of TransAlta from a “sector outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, CIBC cut shares of TransAlta from a “sector outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold”.

TransAlta Price Performance

TAC opened at $11.51 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.94, a current ratio of 0.74 and a quick ratio of 0.67. TransAlta Co. has a 1 year low of $5.94 and a 1 year high of $14.64. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $13.07 and its 200 day simple moving average is $10.61. The firm has a market cap of $3.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.10 and a beta of 0.84.

TransAlta Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 28th. This represents a $0.17 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.47%. TransAlta’s dividend payout ratio is currently 48.65%.

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.