California Public Employees Retirement System Boosts Stake in Pinnacle West Capital Co. (NYSE:PNW)

California Public Employees Retirement System lifted its position in Pinnacle West Capital Co. (NYSE:PNW) by 1.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 649,736 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 7,341 shares during the quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System owned approximately 0.57% of Pinnacle West Capital worth $46,677,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Addison Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Pinnacle West Capital by 16.6% in the 3rd quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 1,014 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $75,000 after acquiring an additional 144 shares during the period. MCF Advisors LLC increased its position in Pinnacle West Capital by 10.0% in the 3rd quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 1,896 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $140,000 after acquiring an additional 173 shares during the period. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Pinnacle West Capital by 6.1% during the fourth quarter. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 4,083 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $293,000 after purchasing an additional 233 shares during the last quarter. M&T Bank Corp raised its stake in shares of Pinnacle West Capital by 3.3% during the third quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 7,440 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $549,000 after purchasing an additional 238 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Treasurer of the State of North Carolina lifted its holdings in shares of Pinnacle West Capital by 0.5% during the third quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 49,733 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $3,664,000 after purchasing an additional 250 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.51% of the company’s stock.

Pinnacle West Capital Price Performance

Shares of PNW opened at $73.68 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.20, a current ratio of 0.67 and a quick ratio of 0.50. The company has a market cap of $8.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.71, a PEG ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 0.49. Pinnacle West Capital Co. has a 12 month low of $65.20 and a 12 month high of $86.03. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $71.88 and a 200 day moving average price of $72.14.

Pinnacle West Capital Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 3rd. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 1st will be given a $0.88 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 30th. This represents a $3.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.78%. Pinnacle West Capital’s dividend payout ratio is presently 79.82%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have commented on PNW shares. UBS Group upgraded shares of Pinnacle West Capital from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $68.00 to $71.00 in a research report on Monday, March 11th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH initiated coverage on shares of Pinnacle West Capital in a research report on Wednesday, February 14th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $69.00 price objective for the company. Bank of America raised Pinnacle West Capital from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the company from $71.00 to $80.00 in a report on Monday, March 18th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of Pinnacle West Capital from $69.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 21st. Finally, Mizuho reduced their price target on shares of Pinnacle West Capital from $77.00 to $75.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $73.00.

Pinnacle West Capital 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.