Insider Buying: Pinnacle West Capital Co. (NYSE:PNW) Director Purchases 500 Shares of Stock

Pinnacle West Capital Co. (NYSE:PNW - Get Free Report) Director Susan T. Flanagan purchased 500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 5th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $86.54 per share, with a total value of $43,270.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 750 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $64,905. This represents a 200.00 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website.

Pinnacle West Capital Stock Up 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE:PNW traded up $0.30 during trading on Thursday, reaching $89.61. 1,259,862 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,129,314. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $88.19 and a 200 day simple moving average of $81.58. The firm has a market cap of $10.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.20 and a beta of 0.52. Pinnacle West Capital Co. has a 1-year low of $65.20 and a 1-year high of $91.57. The company has a quick ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28.

Pinnacle West Capital (NYSE:PNW - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The utilities provider reported $1.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.31 by $0.45. Pinnacle West Capital had a net margin of 12.65% and a return on equity of 9.75%. The company had revenue of $1.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.21 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.94 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 15.7% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that Pinnacle West Capital Co. will post 4.77 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Pinnacle West Capital Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 2nd. Investors of record on Monday, November 4th will be paid a $0.895 dividend. This represents a $3.58 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.00%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 4th. This is a positive change from Pinnacle West Capital's previous quarterly dividend of $0.88. Pinnacle West Capital's payout ratio is presently 76.69%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have issued reports on PNW. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Pinnacle West Capital from $87.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. StockNews.com raised Pinnacle West Capital from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, August 5th. Barclays decreased their price target on shares of Pinnacle West Capital from $81.00 to $78.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, July 2nd. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on shares of Pinnacle West Capital in a research report on Thursday, September 19th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $104.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of Pinnacle West Capital from $78.00 to $83.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $80.79.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Pinnacle West Capital

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Empirical Finance LLC lifted its stake in shares of Pinnacle West Capital by 3.4% in the 1st quarter. Empirical Finance LLC now owns 4,059 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $303,000 after purchasing an additional 134 shares during the last quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. lifted its position in Pinnacle West Capital by 20.9% during the 2nd quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 794 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $61,000 after acquiring an additional 137 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in Pinnacle West Capital by 13.7% during the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,147 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $102,000 after acquiring an additional 138 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its position in Pinnacle West Capital by 0.9% during the 2nd quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 21,724 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,659,000 after acquiring an additional 199 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Private Advisor Group LLC lifted its position in Pinnacle West Capital by 2.2% during the 3rd quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 9,392 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $832,000 after acquiring an additional 203 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.51% of the company's stock.

About Pinnacle West Capital

Pinnacle West Capital Corporation, through its subsidiary, provides retail and wholesale electric services primarily in the state of Arizona. The company engages in the generation, transmission, and distribution of electricity using coal, nuclear, gas, oil, and solar generating facilities. Its transmission facilities include overhead lines and underground lines; and distribution facilities consist of overhead lines and underground primary cables.