Chesapeake Utilities (NYSE:CPK) Downgraded by StockNews.com to Sell

Chesapeake Utilities (NYSE:CPK) was downgraded by investment analysts at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report issued on Thursday.

Separately, Guggenheim boosted their price target on Chesapeake Utilities from $118.00 to $129.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $123.00.

Chesapeake Utilities Price Performance

CPK opened at $126.70 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $2.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.70 and a beta of 0.65. Chesapeake Utilities has a 1 year low of $98.32 and a 1 year high of $134.20. The company has a current ratio of 0.38, a quick ratio of 0.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $122.24 and a 200 day moving average price of $122.35.

Chesapeake Utilities (NYSE:CPK) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The utilities provider reported $1.63 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.67 by ($0.04). Chesapeake Utilities had a return on equity of 9.08% and a net margin of 14.16%. The company had revenue of $215.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $237.84 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.64 EPS. Analysts forecast that Chesapeake Utilities will post 5.39 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Chesapeake Utilities

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its stake in shares of Chesapeake Utilities by 24.7% in the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 76,784 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $9,318,000 after purchasing an additional 15,223 shares during the period. Squarepoint Ops LLC bought a new position in shares of Chesapeake Utilities in the fourth quarter worth about $2,479,000. Snowden Capital Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Chesapeake Utilities by 9.0% in the fourth quarter. Snowden Capital Advisors LLC now owns 3,618 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $441,000 after purchasing an additional 299 shares during the period. ProShare Advisors LLC increased its stake in Chesapeake Utilities by 3.7% during the fourth quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 67,678 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $8,213,000 after acquiring an additional 2,398 shares during the period. Finally, MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its stake in Chesapeake Utilities by 3.9% during the fourth quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 12,582 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,527,000 after acquiring an additional 471 shares during the period. 83.11% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Chesapeake Utilities Company Profile

Chesapeake Utilities Corporation operates as an energy delivery company. The company operates through two segments, Regulated Energy and Unregulated Energy. The Regulated Energy segment natural gas distribution operations in central and southern Delaware, Maryland's eastern shore, and Florida; regulated natural gas transmission in the Delmarva Peninsula, Ohio, and Florida; and regulated electric distribution in northeast and northwest Florida.