Brokerages Set Chesapeake Utilities Co. (NYSE:CPK) Price Target at $109.80

Shares of Chesapeake Utilities Co. (NYSE:CPK) have been given a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” by the four research firms that are covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. The average 1 year target price among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $111.20.

Several research firms recently issued reports on CPK. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Chesapeake Utilities from $111.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 13th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Chesapeake Utilities from $105.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, May 10th.

Chesapeake Utilities Stock Down 0.1 %

Shares of NYSE CPK opened at $114.57 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $2.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.07 and a beta of 0.60. Chesapeake Utilities has a 1 year low of $83.79 and a 1 year high of $120.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 0.46 and a quick ratio of 0.38. The business has a 50-day moving average of $111.45 and a two-hundred day moving average of $107.62.

Chesapeake Utilities (NYSE:CPK) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 8th. The utilities provider reported $0.86 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.88 by ($0.02). Chesapeake Utilities had a net margin of 13.90% and a return on equity of 10.17%. The business had revenue of $166.30 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $194.70 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.90 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 22.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts forecast that Chesapeake Utilities will post 5.41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Chesapeake Utilities Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, October 7th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 16th will be paid a $0.64 dividend. This represents a $2.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.23%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 16th. Chesapeake Utilities’s dividend payout ratio is presently 53.78%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Chesapeake Utilities

In other news, Director Paul L. Maddock, Jr. sold 9,634 shares of Chesapeake Utilities stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $113.56, for a total transaction of $1,094,037.04. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 8,363 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $949,702.28. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 2.68% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CPK. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Chesapeake Utilities by 308.6% during the fourth quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 286 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 216 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC purchased a new position in shares of Chesapeake Utilities during the fourth quarter valued at $30,000. Fortis Group Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Chesapeake Utilities by 100.0% in the fourth quarter. Fortis Group Advisors LLC now owns 292 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 146 shares in the last quarter. Principal Securities Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Chesapeake Utilities during the 4th quarter valued at $41,000. Finally, Signaturefd LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Chesapeake Utilities by 126.1% during the 4th quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 398 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 222 shares during the last quarter. 83.11% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.