Pinnacle West Capital (NYSE:PNW) Releases Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.17 EPS

Pinnacle West Capital (NYSE:PNW) released its earnings results on Tuesday. The utilities provider reported $3.49 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.32 by $0.17, FiscalAI reports. Pinnacle West Capital had a net margin of 11.52% and a return on equity of 8.99%. The business had revenue of $1.97 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.90 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $3.39 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 8.3% on a year-over-year basis.

Pinnacle West Capital Trading Up 1.3%

Shares of Pinnacle West Capital stock traded up $1.37 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $107.32. The stock had a trading volume of 372,581 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,241,894. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $98.46 and a two-hundred day moving average of $100.38. Pinnacle West Capital has a 12-month low of $86.18 and a 12-month high of $111.16. The company has a quick ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 0.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.38. The firm has a market cap of $13.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.75 and a beta of 0.43.

Pinnacle West Capital Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 2nd will be issued a $0.9250 dividend. This represents a $3.70 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.4%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 2nd. This is a positive change from Pinnacle West Capital’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.91. Pinnacle West Capital’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 70.88%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the company. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price objective on Pinnacle West Capital from $129.00 to $109.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, October 5th. BMO Capital Markets dropped their target price on shares of Pinnacle West Capital from $106.00 to $104.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. TD Cowen reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Pinnacle West Capital in a research report on Wednesday, August 12th. Scotiabank started coverage on shares of Pinnacle West Capital in a research note on Tuesday, September 29th. They issued a “sector outperform” rating and a $104.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Pinnacle West Capital in a research report on Friday. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Pinnacle West Capital has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $103.39.

Insider Activity at Pinnacle West Capital

In related news, SVP Luis Esparza, Jr. sold 1,800 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $102.01, for a total value of $183,618.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 4,910 shares in the company, valued at approximately $500,869.10. This represents a 26.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CAO Elizabeth Blankenship sold 980 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $99.17, for a total value of $97,186.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 10,886 shares in the company, valued at $1,079,564.62. This represents a 8.26% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.19% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

About Pinnacle West Capital

Pinnacle West Capital Corporation (NYSE:PNW) is an energy holding company based in Phoenix, Arizona. Its principal subsidiary, Arizona Public Service Company (APS), is an electric utility that generates, transmits and distributes electricity to customers across Arizona.

APS serves residential, commercial, industrial and governmental customers through a diverse power portfolio that includes nuclear, natural gas, coal, solar and other renewable energy resources. The utility is also involved in maintaining and expanding the electric grid, supporting energy-efficiency programs and developing cleaner energy resources.