PG&E Co. (NYSE:PCG) Sees Large Growth in Short Interest

PG&E Co. (NYSE:PCG) was the recipient of a significant increase in short interest during the month of March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 44,640,000 shares, an increase of 30.8% from the February 28th total of 34,120,000 shares. Approximately 1.7% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 22,790,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.0 days.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have issued reports on PCG. Barclays cut their target price on PG&E from $24.00 to $23.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $22.00 price objective on shares of PG&E in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on shares of PG&E from $21.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. UBS Group downgraded shares of PG&E from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their price target for the company from $22.00 to $19.00 in a research note on Wednesday, March 19th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of PG&E from $16.50 to $17.50 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $22.05.

Insider Activity at PG&E

In related news, EVP Carla J. Peterman sold 32,521 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $16.37, for a total value of $532,368.77. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 183,635 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,006,104.95. This represents a 15.05 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Arno Lockheart Harris bought 6,389 shares of PG&E stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $15.66 per share, for a total transaction of $100,051.74. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 14,864 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $232,770.24. This trade represents a 75.39 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 0.15% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its position in shares of PG&E by 68.3% during the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,543 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 626 shares in the last quarter. Baker Tilly Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of PG&E by 4.6% in the 4th quarter. Baker Tilly Wealth Management LLC now owns 16,337 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $330,000 after buying an additional 715 shares in the last quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC grew its position in shares of PG&E by 11.4% in the 3rd quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 7,501 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $157,000 after buying an additional 769 shares during the last quarter. Level Four Advisory Services LLC grew its position in shares of PG&E by 7.5% in the 4th quarter. Level Four Advisory Services LLC now owns 11,066 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $223,000 after buying an additional 772 shares during the last quarter. Finally, iA Global Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in PG&E by 2.6% during the 3rd quarter. iA Global Asset Management Inc. now owns 31,545 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $624,000 after acquiring an additional 812 shares in the last quarter. 78.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

PG&E Stock Up 1.1 %

PCG traded up $0.19 on Monday, hitting $17.19. 17,925,321 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 15,894,064. PG&E has a twelve month low of $14.99 and a twelve month high of $21.72. The company has a market cap of $45.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.09 and a beta of 1.04. The company has a current ratio of 1.05, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.86. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $16.21 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $18.65.

PG&E (NYSE:PCG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The utilities provider reported $0.31 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.31. The company had revenue of $6.63 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.29 billion. PG&E had a net margin of 10.27% and a return on equity of 10.94%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.47 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that PG&E will post 1.49 earnings per share for the current year.

PG&E Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be issued a dividend of $0.025 per share. This represents a $0.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.58%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. PG&E’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 8.70%.

PG&E Company Profile

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.