Russell Investments Group Ltd. Sells 22,960 Shares of Chesapeake Utilities Co. (NYSE:CPK)

Russell Investments Group Ltd. lessened its holdings in shares of Chesapeake Utilities Co. (NYSE:CPK) by 35.9% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 40,964 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 22,960 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd.’s holdings in Chesapeake Utilities were worth $4,971,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System lifted its position in Chesapeake Utilities by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 11,000 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,335,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund raised its position in shares of Chesapeake Utilities by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 5,350 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $649,000 after buying an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System lifted its holdings in shares of Chesapeake Utilities by 1.6% during the 4th quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 6,516 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $791,000 after acquiring an additional 103 shares during the last quarter. Caprock Group LLC grew its position in Chesapeake Utilities by 3.4% in the fourth quarter. Caprock Group LLC now owns 3,313 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $404,000 after acquiring an additional 110 shares in the last quarter. Finally, HighTower Advisors LLC raised its position in Chesapeake Utilities by 2.4% during the third quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 5,659 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $702,000 after purchasing an additional 130 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.11% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. StockNews.com upgraded Chesapeake Utilities from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH upgraded shares of Chesapeake Utilities to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 3rd. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $122.67.

Chesapeake Utilities Trading Up 2.6 %

NYSE CPK opened at $134.49 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $3.09 billion, a PE ratio of 27.28 and a beta of 0.66. Chesapeake Utilities Co. has a 1-year low of $98.32 and a 1-year high of $134.93. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $126.39 and a 200-day moving average of $124.34. The company has a current ratio of 0.38, a quick ratio of 0.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87.

Chesapeake Utilities (NYSE:CPK) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 26th. The utilities provider reported $1.63 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.67 by ($0.04). Chesapeake Utilities had a net margin of 14.16% and a return on equity of 9.08%. The company had revenue of $215.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $237.84 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.64 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Chesapeake Utilities Co. will post 5.39 EPS for the current year.

Chesapeake Utilities Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 7th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th were given a dividend of $0.64 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. This represents a $2.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.90%. Chesapeake Utilities’s payout ratio is currently 48.58%.

Chesapeake Utilities 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.