Epoch Investment Partners Inc. Reduces Stock Holdings in Pinnacle West Capital Co. (NYSE:PNW)

Epoch Investment Partners Inc. lowered its holdings in shares of Pinnacle West Capital Co. (NYSE:PNW) by 14.8% in the first quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 625,176 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 108,793 shares during the quarter. Epoch Investment Partners Inc.’s holdings in Pinnacle West Capital were worth $46,719,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Empirical Finance LLC boosted its holdings in Pinnacle West Capital by 3.4% during the 1st quarter. Empirical Finance LLC now owns 4,059 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $303,000 after acquiring an additional 134 shares during the period. MCF Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Pinnacle West Capital by 9.2% in the 4th quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 2,070 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $149,000 after buying an additional 174 shares during the period. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Pinnacle West Capital by 70.6% in the 4th quarter. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 481 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 199 shares during the period. Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Pinnacle West Capital by 4.9% in the 4th quarter. Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. now owns 4,921 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $354,000 after buying an additional 229 shares during the period. Finally, Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Pinnacle West Capital by 6.1% in the 4th quarter. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 4,083 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $293,000 after buying an additional 233 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.51% of the company’s stock.

Pinnacle West Capital Stock Up 1.3 %

NYSE:PNW traded up $1.12 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $84.71. 492,949 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 901,571. The company has a fifty day moving average of $77.77 and a 200 day moving average of $73.88. Pinnacle West Capital Co. has a twelve month low of $65.20 and a twelve month high of $85.00. The company has a market capitalization of $9.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.46, a P/E/G ratio of 2.17 and a beta of 0.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.20, a quick ratio of 0.42 and a current ratio of 0.58.

Pinnacle West Capital (NYSE:PNW) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The utilities provider reported $0.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.02) by $0.17. Pinnacle West Capital had a return on equity of 8.29% and a net margin of 11.09%. The company had revenue of $951.71 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $981.82 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted ($0.03) EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up .7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts forecast that Pinnacle West Capital Co. will post 4.75 EPS for the current year.

Pinnacle West Capital Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 3rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 1st will be issued a $0.88 dividend. This represents a $3.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.16%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 1st. Pinnacle West Capital’s dividend payout ratio is presently 76.69%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Barclays lowered their target price on Pinnacle West Capital from $81.00 to $78.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, July 2nd. Citigroup assumed coverage on Pinnacle West Capital in a report on Monday, April 29th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $78.00 target price for the company. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on Pinnacle West Capital from $76.00 to $72.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, June 24th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Pinnacle West Capital from $77.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 5th. Finally, LADENBURG THALM/SH SH raised Pinnacle West Capital from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $74.00 to $83.50 in a research report on Thursday, June 6th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Pinnacle West Capital presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $76.77.

Pinnacle West Capital Company Profile

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.