Pinnacle West Capital Co. (NYSE:PNW) Sees Large Increase in Short Interest

Pinnacle West Capital Co. (NYSE:PNW) was the target of a significant growth in short interest in the month of January. As of January 31st, there was short interest totalling 3,530,000 shares, a growth of 16.9% from the January 15th total of 3,020,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 1,170,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.0 days.

Pinnacle West Capital Price Performance

NYSE PNW traded up $0.02 during trading on Monday, reaching $89.37. 1,003,110 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 986,817. The company has a market cap of $10.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.93, a P/E/G ratio of 3.47 and a beta of 0.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.20, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a current ratio of 0.71. Pinnacle West Capital has a 1-year low of $66.77 and a 1-year high of $95.42. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $86.14 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $87.88.

Pinnacle West Capital Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 3rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 3rd will be issued a $0.895 dividend. This represents a $3.58 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.01%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 3rd. Pinnacle West Capital’s payout ratio is currently 67.80%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Barclays downgraded Pinnacle West Capital from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $93.00 to $91.00 in a research report on Monday, November 18th. KeyCorp raised Pinnacle West Capital from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $101.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Pinnacle West Capital from $90.00 to $92.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their target price on Pinnacle West Capital from $106.00 to $104.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on Pinnacle West Capital from $82.00 to $81.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $85.21.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Pinnacle West Capital by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 14,180,909 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,202,116,000 after acquiring an additional 143,716 shares in the last quarter. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Pinnacle West Capital by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC now owns 6,864,993 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $581,945,000 after acquiring an additional 37,768 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Pinnacle West Capital by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 6,404,718 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $567,394,000 after acquiring an additional 56,644 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Pinnacle West Capital by 32.2% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,298,009 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $364,342,000 after acquiring an additional 1,045,788 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Zimmer Partners LP boosted its holdings in shares of Pinnacle West Capital by 5.7% in the 3rd quarter. Zimmer Partners LP now owns 2,899,676 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $256,882,000 after acquiring an additional 155,466 shares in the last quarter. 91.51% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.