Chesapeake Utilities Co. (NYSE:CPK) Shares Sold by Bokf Na

Bokf Na lowered its stake in Chesapeake Utilities Co. (NYSE:CPK) by 24.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,650 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 866 shares during the quarter. Bokf Na’s holdings in Chesapeake Utilities were worth $309,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Chesapeake Utilities by 2.4% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,934,574 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $234,761,000 after acquiring an additional 44,692 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC lifted its position in Chesapeake Utilities by 2.7% in the fourth quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 495,178 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $60,090,000 after purchasing an additional 12,889 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. boosted its stake in Chesapeake Utilities by 3.0% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 464,679 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $56,389,000 after purchasing an additional 13,742 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its position in shares of Chesapeake Utilities by 10.3% during the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 317,752 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $38,559,000 after purchasing an additional 29,759 shares during the period. Finally, Northern Trust Corp raised its stake in shares of Chesapeake Utilities by 9.0% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 281,910 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $34,210,000 after buying an additional 23,160 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 83.11% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CPK has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. StockNews.com lowered Chesapeake Utilities from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH upgraded shares of Chesapeake Utilities to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Finally, Barclays reduced their target price on shares of Chesapeake Utilities from $125.00 to $124.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 29th.

Chesapeake Utilities Trading Down 2.6 %

NYSE:CPK opened at $126.73 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $129.54 and a 200 day simple moving average of $125.94. The company has a quick ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 0.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.71 and a beta of 0.71. Chesapeake Utilities Co. has a 1-year low of $102.64 and a 1-year high of $136.73.

Chesapeake Utilities (NYSE:CPK) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The utilities provider reported $2.22 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.28 by ($0.06). The firm had revenue of $298.70 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $248.45 million. Chesapeake Utilities had a return on equity of 9.08% and a net margin of 14.16%. The business’s revenue was up 21.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.10 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that Chesapeake Utilities Co. will post 5.39 earnings per share for the current year.

Chesapeake Utilities Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 7th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 16th will be issued a dividend of $0.685 per share. This is an increase from Chesapeake Utilities’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.64. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 16th. This represents a $2.74 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.16%. Chesapeake Utilities’s payout ratio is currently 47.32%.

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.