PG&E Co. (NYSE:PCG) Given Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

PG&E Co. (NYSE:PCG) has received an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the ten research firms that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price objective among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $22.80.

A number of brokerages have weighed in on PCG. Bank of America began coverage on PG&E in a report on Thursday, September 12th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $24.00 target price on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on PG&E in a research report on Monday, October 14th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $24.00 target price on the stock. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of PG&E from $24.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of PG&E from $21.00 to $22.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of PG&E from $19.00 to $20.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th.

Institutional Trading of PG&E

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of PCG. Rothschild Investment LLC acquired a new position in PG&E during the 2nd quarter worth about $30,000. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its holdings in PG&E by 84.7% in the second quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 2,204 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 1,011 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. increased its position in PG&E by 77.0% during the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,361 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 1,027 shares during the period. Plato Investment Management Ltd bought a new position in PG&E during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $44,000. Finally, Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV lifted its position in shares of PG&E by 48.8% in the 2nd quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 3,596 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $63,000 after purchasing an additional 1,179 shares during the period. 78.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

PG&E Trading Up 0.6 %

PCG opened at $21.35 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $55.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.68, a P/E/G ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 1.03. The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.02. PG&E has a twelve month low of $15.94 and a twelve month high of $21.51. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $20.24 and a 200 day simple moving average of $18.98.

PG&E (NYSE:PCG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The utilities provider reported $0.37 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.32 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $5.94 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.58 billion. PG&E had a net margin of 11.11% and a return on equity of 12.51%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up .9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.24 EPS. Analysts predict that PG&E will post 1.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

PG&E Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 30th were paid a dividend of $0.01 per share. This represents a $0.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.19%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 30th. PG&E’s payout ratio is currently 3.13%.

PG&E Company Profile

PG&E Corporation, through its subsidiary, Pacific Gas and Electric Company, engages in the sale and delivery of electricity and natural gas to customers in northern and central California, the United States. It generates electricity using nuclear, hydroelectric, fossil fuel-fired, fuel cell, and photovoltaic sources.