Back to top

Image: Bigstock

TransAlta (TAC) Dips More Than Broader Market: What You Should Know

Read MoreHide Full Article

TransAlta (TAC - Free Report) closed at $6.41 in the latest trading session, marking a -0.31% move from the prior day. The stock fell short of the S&P 500, which registered a loss of 0.2% for the day. Meanwhile, the Dow lost 0.6%, and the Nasdaq, a tech-heavy index, added 0.11%.

The the stock of power generation and marketing company has fallen by 5.86% in the past month, lagging the Utilities sector's gain of 4.53% and the S&P 500's gain of 3.32%.

Investors will be eagerly watching for the performance of TransAlta in its upcoming earnings disclosure. The company's earnings per share (EPS) are projected to be $0.10, reflecting an 87.65% decrease from the same quarter last year.

TAC's full-year Zacks Consensus Estimates are calling for earnings of $0.51 per share and revenue of $2.08 billion. These results would represent year-over-year changes of -67.52% and -16.25%, respectively.

Investors might also notice recent changes to analyst estimates for TransAlta. These revisions typically reflect the latest short-term business trends, which can change frequently. Therefore, positive revisions in estimates convey analysts' confidence in the company's business performance and profit potential.

Our research suggests that these changes in estimates have a direct relationship with upcoming stock price performance. We developed the Zacks Rank to capitalize on this phenomenon. Our system takes these estimate changes into account and delivers a clear, actionable rating model.

The Zacks Rank system, stretching from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), has a noteworthy track record of outperforming, validated by third-party audits, with stocks rated #1 producing an average annual return of +25% since the year 1988. Over the past month, the Zacks Consensus EPS estimate remained stagnant. TransAlta is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

From a valuation perspective, TransAlta is currently exchanging hands at a Forward P/E ratio of 12.69. This indicates a discount in contrast to its industry's Forward P/E of 15.46.

The Utility - Electric Power industry is part of the Utilities sector. With its current Zacks Industry Rank of 90, this industry ranks in the top 36% of all industries, numbering over 250.

The Zacks Industry Rank gauges the strength of our industry groups by measuring the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within the groups. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.

Don't forget to use Zacks.com to keep track of all these stock-moving metrics, and others, in the upcoming trading sessions.


See More Zacks Research for These Tickers


Normally $25 each - click below to receive one report FREE:


TransAlta Corporation (TAC) - free report >>

Published in