TransAlta (TSE:TA) Share Price Crosses Above 200 Day Moving Average – Should You Sell?

TransAlta Co. (TSE:TA) (NYSE:TAC) crossed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Friday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of C$11.37 and traded as high as C$14.78. TransAlta shares last traded at C$14.47, with a volume of 1,040,118 shares traded.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have weighed in on TA shares. TD Securities lifted their price objective on shares of TransAlta from C$16.00 to C$18.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on shares of TransAlta from C$14.00 to C$16.00 in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. National Bankshares upped their price target on TransAlta from C$14.00 to C$15.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. CIBC reduced their target price on shares of TransAlta from C$16.50 to C$15.50 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on TransAlta from C$16.00 to C$17.00 in a research report on Thursday, September 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of C$16.17.

TransAlta Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 219.87, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a current ratio of 0.84. The company has a market capitalization of C$4.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.62, a P/E/G ratio of -0.07 and a beta of 0.93. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of C$13.72 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of C$11.37.

TransAlta Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 1st. Shareholders of record on Sunday, December 1st will be given a $0.06 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 29th. This represents a $0.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.66%. TransAlta’s dividend payout ratio is presently 12.63%.

Insider Transactions at TransAlta

In related news, Senior Officer Jane Nyla Fedoretz sold 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of C$13.92, for a total value of C$278,400.00. Corporate insiders own 0.21% of the company’s stock.

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.