AGP Franklin LLC Buys Shares of 3,988 Chesapeake Utilities Co. (NYSE:CPK)

AGP Franklin LLC bought a new position in Chesapeake Utilities Co. (NYSE:CPK - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm bought 3,988 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $484,000.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of CPK. FMR LLC increased its position in Chesapeake Utilities by 12.7% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 4,859 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $603,000 after purchasing an additional 547 shares during the last quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Chesapeake Utilities by 2.4% in the 3rd quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 5,659 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $702,000 after buying an additional 130 shares during the period. Stifel Financial Corp increased its holdings in shares of Chesapeake Utilities by 10.0% during the 3rd quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 33,145 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $4,116,000 after buying an additional 3,001 shares during the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC raised its position in shares of Chesapeake Utilities by 11.6% during the 3rd quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 41,032 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $5,095,000 after buying an additional 4,262 shares during the period. Finally, XTX Topco Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Chesapeake Utilities in the 3rd quarter valued at $390,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.11% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CPK has been the subject of several research reports. StockNews.com upgraded shares of 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 note on Thursday, April 3rd. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $122.67.

Chesapeake Utilities Stock Performance

NYSE CPK traded up $1.68 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $135.17. The company had a trading volume of 171,797 shares, compared to its average volume of 102,082. The business has a 50 day moving average of $127.29 and a 200-day moving average of $124.65. The company has a market cap of $3.11 billion, a PE ratio of 27.42 and a beta of 0.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.32 and a current ratio of 0.38. Chesapeake Utilities Co. has a 1-year low of $102.64 and a 1-year high of $136.52.

Chesapeake Utilities (NYSE:CPK - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 26th. The utilities provider reported $1.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.67 by ($0.04). The business had revenue of $215.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $237.84 million. Chesapeake Utilities had a return on equity of 9.08% and a net margin of 14.16%. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.64 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Chesapeake Utilities Co. will post 5.39 EPS for the current year.

Chesapeake Utilities Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 7th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th were issued a dividend of $0.64 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 14th. This represents a $2.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.89%. Chesapeake Utilities's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 48.58%.

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.