Clayton Partners LLC Increases Holdings in TransAlta Co. (NYSE:TAC)

Clayton Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of TransAlta Co. (NYSE:TAC) (TSE:TA) by 2,293.5% during the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 458,155 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 439,013 shares during the period. TransAlta accounts for 2.6% of Clayton Partners LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 16th largest position. Clayton Partners LLC owned about 0.15% of TransAlta worth $3,244,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. NBC Securities Inc. lifted its stake in TransAlta by 156.3% in the 1st quarter. NBC Securities Inc. now owns 4,100 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 2,500 shares in the last quarter. DORCHESTER WEALTH MANAGEMENT Co raised its position in shares of TransAlta by 2.3% in the first quarter. DORCHESTER WEALTH MANAGEMENT Co now owns 148,300 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $951,000 after buying an additional 3,375 shares in the last quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. boosted its stake in TransAlta by 50.3% during the fourth quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 11,576 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $96,000 after buying an additional 3,876 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. grew its position in TransAlta by 1,381.5% during the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 4,237 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 3,951 shares in the last quarter. Finally, PNC Financial Services Group Inc. bought a new position in TransAlta in the 4th quarter worth about $33,000. Institutional investors own 59.00% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, StockNews.com downgraded TransAlta from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, September 16th.

TransAlta Price Performance

TAC stock opened at $9.80 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $8.32 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $7.33. The stock has a market cap of $2.97 billion, a PE ratio of 6.32 and a beta of 0.91. TransAlta Co. has a one year low of $5.94 and a one year high of $9.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.43, a current ratio of 0.84 and a quick ratio of 0.75.

TransAlta (NYSE:TAC) (TSE:TA) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The utilities provider reported $0.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.05 by $0.08. TransAlta had a net margin of 18.41% and a return on equity of 47.71%. The company had revenue of $425.37 million during the quarter. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.17 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that TransAlta Co. will post 0.75 EPS for the current fiscal year.

TransAlta Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 1st. Stockholders of record on Sunday, September 1st will be given a dividend of $0.044 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 30th. This is a positive change from TransAlta’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.04. This represents a $0.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.80%. TransAlta’s dividend payout ratio is 10.97%.

TransAlta Company Profile

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.