Barclays Has Lowered Expectations for PG&E (NYSE:PCG) Stock Price

PG&E (NYSE:PCG - Free Report) had its price objective reduced by Barclays from $25.00 to $24.00 in a report issued on Tuesday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have an overweight rating on the utilities provider's stock.

A number of other research analysts have also commented on the stock. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of PG&E from $24.00 to $26.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 3rd. Bank of America began coverage on PG&E in a research note on Thursday, September 12th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $24.00 target price on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of PG&E in a report on Monday, October 14th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $24.00 price objective for the company. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of PG&E from $19.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. Finally, Mizuho lifted their target price on shares of PG&E from $24.00 to $26.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, November 27th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, PG&E has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $23.00.

PG&E Stock Up 0.6 %

PCG stock traded up $0.11 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $19.71. 14,219,469 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 14,319,353. The stock has a market cap of $51.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.50, a P/E/G ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.01. 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 fifty-two week low of $15.94 and a fifty-two week high of $21.72. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $20.52 and its 200 day moving average price is $19.27.

PG&E (NYSE:PCG - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The utilities provider reported $0.37 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.32 by $0.05. PG&E had a net margin of 11.11% and a return on equity of 12.51%. The firm had revenue of $5.94 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.58 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.24 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up .9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts predict that PG&E will post 1.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

PG&E Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be paid a dividend of $0.025 per share. This is a boost from PG&E's previous quarterly dividend of $0.01. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $0.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.51%. PG&E's payout ratio is 3.13%.

Insider Activity at PG&E

In other PG&E news, CEO Patricia K. Poppe sold 55,555 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, December 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.66, for a total value of $1,147,766.30. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 1,460,222 shares in the company, valued at $30,168,186.52. The trade was a 3.67 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.15% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of PG&E

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of PCG. Rothschild Investment LLC purchased a new stake in shares of PG&E during the 2nd quarter valued at about $30,000. UMB Bank n.a. raised its position in shares of PG&E by 84.7% during the 2nd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 2,204 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 1,011 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. grew its holdings 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 last quarter. Plato Investment Management Ltd bought a new position in PG&E during the 2nd quarter valued at about $44,000. Finally, Crewe Advisors LLC grew its holdings in PG&E by 243.0% during the 2nd quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 4,041 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $71,000 after purchasing an additional 2,863 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.56% of the company's stock.

About PG&E

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.