Pinnacle West Capital (NYSE:PNW) Coverage Initiated at Jefferies Financial Group

Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of Pinnacle West Capital (NYSE:PNW) in a research report sent to investors on Thursday, MarketBeat.com reports. The brokerage issued a buy rating and a $104.00 price objective on the utilities provider’s stock.

Other research analysts have also issued reports about the stock. StockNews.com raised shares of Pinnacle West Capital from a sell rating to a hold rating in a research note on Monday, August 5th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Pinnacle West Capital from $72.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an equal weight rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH raised Pinnacle West Capital from a neutral rating to a buy rating and upped their price target for the stock from $74.00 to $83.50 in a research note on Thursday, June 6th. Barclays reduced their price objective on Pinnacle West Capital from $81.00 to $78.00 and set an overweight rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, July 2nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Pinnacle West Capital from $80.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock an equal weight rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of Hold and an average target price of $80.13.

Pinnacle West Capital Stock Performance

Shares of Pinnacle West Capital stock opened at $90.28 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $10.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.67, a PEG ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 0.52. The company has a current ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $86.46 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $79.03. Pinnacle West Capital has a 1-year low of $65.20 and a 1-year high of $91.57.

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Pinnacle West Capital

In other news, EVP Robert Edgar Smith sold 4,950 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.80, for a total value of $424,710.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 6,397 shares in the company, valued at approximately $548,862.60. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its position in shares of Pinnacle West Capital by 377.9% during the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 368 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 291 shares in the last quarter. Cape Investment Advisory Inc. bought a new stake in Pinnacle West Capital during the first quarter worth $30,000. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. boosted its position in Pinnacle West Capital by 70.6% in the fourth quarter. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 481 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 199 shares during the last quarter. Rise Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Pinnacle West Capital in the first quarter worth $36,000. Finally, Riverview Trust Co bought a new position in Pinnacle West Capital in the 1st quarter valued at $46,000. 91.51% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.