Pacific Gas & Electric Co. (NYSE:PCG) Receives Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Shares of Pacific Gas & Electric Co. (NYSE:PCG) have received an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the fifteen analysts that are covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $20.6364.

Several analysts have recently weighed in on PCG shares. Cowen initiated coverage on shares of Pacific Gas & Electric in a report on Wednesday, October 15th. They set a “buy” rating for the company. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on Pacific Gas & Electric from $23.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 14th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Pacific Gas & Electric from $17.00 to $18.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, October 24th. Zacks Research raised Pacific Gas & Electric from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, August 18th. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $21.00 target price on Pacific Gas & Electric and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 22nd.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director John O. Larsen purchased 7,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 4th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $15.96 per share, with a total value of $119,700.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 18,111 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $289,051.56. This trade represents a 70.68% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.15% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of PCG. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Pacific Gas & Electric by 1.2% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 257,285,352 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $4,420,162,000 after buying an additional 2,926,384 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Pacific Gas & Electric by 3.0% during the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 58,079,843 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $819,447,000 after acquiring an additional 1,676,093 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp boosted its holdings in Pacific Gas & Electric by 4.3% in the first quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 19,944,322 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $342,643,000 after acquiring an additional 818,377 shares during the last quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board increased its position in Pacific Gas & Electric by 352.3% in the first quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 19,172,519 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $329,384,000 after purchasing an additional 14,933,364 shares during the period. Finally, Sessa Capital IM L.P. bought a new stake in Pacific Gas & Electric during the 1st quarter worth about $320,984,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.56% of the company’s stock.

Pacific Gas & Electric Stock Down 3.3%

Shares of NYSE PCG opened at $15.31 on Wednesday. Pacific Gas & Electric has a 52-week low of $12.97 and a 52-week high of $21.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.81, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a current ratio of 0.94. The business has a fifty day moving average of $16.05 and a two-hundred day moving average of $15.27. The stock has a market cap of $33.66 billion, a PE ratio of 12.87, a PEG ratio of 0.66 and a beta of 0.37.

Pacific Gas & Electric (NYSE:PCG) last posted its earnings results on Monday, May 15th. The utilities provider reported $0.30 earnings per share for the quarter. Pacific Gas & Electric had a net margin of 10.93% and a return on equity of 11.10%. The business had revenue of $5.80 billion for the quarter. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Pacific Gas & Electric will post 1.49 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Pacific Gas & Electric Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, October 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 30th were paid a $0.025 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, September 30th. This represents a $0.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. Pacific Gas & Electric’s payout ratio is currently 8.40%.

About Pacific Gas & Electric

PG&E Corp. operates as a holding company, which engages in generation, transmission, and distribution of electricity and natural gas to customers. It specializes in energy, utility, power, gas, electricity, solar and sustainability. The company was founded in 1995 and is headquartered in Oakland, CA.