PG&E Co. (NYSE:PCG) Stock Position Boosted by Maryland State Retirement & Pension System

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System grew its stake in shares of PG&E Co. (NYSE:PCG) by 3.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,952,530 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 63,731 shares during the quarter. PG&E comprises 0.7% of Maryland State Retirement & Pension System’s holdings, making the stock its 23rd biggest position. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System owned about 0.07% of PG&E worth $35,204,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in PCG. Raymond James Trust N.A. lifted its position in PG&E by 4.2% in the fourth quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. now owns 17,013 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $307,000 after purchasing an additional 680 shares during the period. Bleakley Financial Group LLC boosted its stake in PG&E by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC now owns 45,332 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $817,000 after buying an additional 691 shares in the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC boosted its stake in PG&E by 10.9% during the third quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 8,067 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $130,000 after buying an additional 794 shares in the last quarter. Glenmede Trust Co. NA grew its holdings in PG&E by 5.5% during the third quarter. Glenmede Trust Co. NA now owns 15,982 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $258,000 after acquiring an additional 835 shares during the period. Finally, Caprock Group LLC raised its position in PG&E by 5.1% in the fourth quarter. Caprock Group LLC now owns 20,496 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $370,000 after acquiring an additional 999 shares in the last quarter. 78.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

PG&E Price Performance

PCG stock remained flat at $17.67 on Tuesday. 4,722,005 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 15,223,507. The company has a quick ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.08. PG&E Co. has a fifty-two week low of $14.71 and a fifty-two week high of $18.32. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $16.68 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $16.96. The stock has a market capitalization of $50.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.78 and a beta of 1.26.

PG&E (NYSE:PCG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The utilities provider reported $0.37 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.35 by $0.02. PG&E had a net margin of 10.05% and a return on equity of 11.32%. The company had revenue of $5.86 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.60 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.29 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 5.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts expect that PG&E Co. will post 1.35 EPS for the current fiscal year.

PG&E Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 28th were paid a $0.01 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 27th. This represents a $0.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.23%. PG&E’s payout ratio is 3.57%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently commented on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on shares of PG&E in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. They set a “buy” rating and a $21.00 target price for the company. StockNews.com raised PG&E from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on PG&E from $18.00 to $19.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 23rd. Finally, Barclays increased their price target on PG&E from $20.00 to $21.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, April 26th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $19.11.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other PG&E news, CEO Patricia K. Poppe sold 59,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.08, for a total transaction of $1,007,720.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,515,777 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $25,889,471.16. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.15% of the company’s stock.

PG&E Profile

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.