The S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is having a pretty pleasing day of trading so far this Wednesday. At the time of writing, the ASX 200 is up a healthy 0.78% to 7,432 points. But one ASX 200 blue chip share is doubling the performance of the ASX 200 today. That would be the Transurban Group (ASX: TCL) share price.
The toll-road operator's shares are currently trading at $13.825 each, up 1.58% for the day so far. That share price puts Transurban shares right in the middle of their 52-week range ($12.26 to $15.50).
So what's pushing Transurban up so enthusiastically this Wednesday?
Well, it's not entirely clear. There is no official major news or any announcements out of the company today. However, we do have a potential clue to point to.
Atlas Arteria tolls the bell on reopening
Transurban's fellow toll road operator Atlas Arteria Group (ASX: ALX) has today released a traffic volume update covering the most recent quarter (1 July to 30 September). Although Atlas Arteria doesn't own any Australian toll roads anymore, its traffic volume data (from France, Germany and the United States) could still give investors some indicative data on how other countries are bouncing back from COVID-induced lockdowns.
Atlas Ateria reported that the weighted average of traffic volumes across its four toll roads increased by 9.7% over the same quarter of 2020. Against the same period in pre-COVID 2019, it was up by 3.1%. In terms of toll revenue, the roads also experienced a 9.7% increase over 2020's September quarter and a 3.7% increase over the same period in 2019.
The company noted the rise has been primarily driven by an increase in French domestic summer travel. This has come despite the introduction of 'digital COVID certificates' across Europe, which are now required for most travel and hospitality purposes.
It remains to be seen whether this Atlas Ateria update will correlate with Transurban's figures. But judging by what the market has done to Transurban share price today, it seems many investors are optimistic. Atlas Arteria shares are also enjoying some outsized gains today too. The company is presently up 1.97% to $6.48 a share.
Transurban share price snapshot
Although the Transurban share price is enjoying a healthy day in the green today, the past few months haven't been as rosy. The company remains up 2% year to date, far below what the ASX 200 has achieved (11.13%). It's also up just 0.18% over the past 12 months, again trailing the ASX 200 (20.11%).
At Transurban's current share price of $13.83, the company has a market capitalisation of $42.21 billion and a dividend yield of 2.62%.
