Chesapeake Utilities (NYSE:CPK) Cut to "Sell" at StockNews.com

Chesapeake Utilities (NYSE:CPK - Get Free Report) was downgraded by StockNews.com from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a note issued to investors on Tuesday.

A number of other equities analysts have also weighed in on CPK. Barclays lifted their price objective on Chesapeake Utilities from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH upgraded Chesapeake Utilities to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $123.00.

Chesapeake Utilities Stock Performance

CPK traded down $1.30 on Tuesday, reaching $132.27. 95,489 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 103,294. The company's 50-day moving average price is $128.37 and its 200 day moving average price is $125.21. Chesapeake Utilities has a fifty-two week low of $102.64 and a fifty-two week high of $136.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a current ratio of 0.38 and a quick ratio of 0.32. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.04 billion, a PE ratio of 26.83 and a beta of 0.66.

Chesapeake Utilities (NYSE:CPK - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The utilities provider reported $1.63 EPS 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 firm had revenue of $215.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $237.84 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.64 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Chesapeake Utilities will post 5.39 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Chesapeake Utilities

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System increased its stake in shares of Chesapeake Utilities by 0.9% in the 4th 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 in the last quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund increased its stake in shares of Chesapeake Utilities by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 5,350 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $649,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System increased its stake in shares of Chesapeake Utilities by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 6,516 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $791,000 after purchasing an additional 103 shares in the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Chesapeake Utilities by 50.7% in the 1st quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 315 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 106 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Summit Investment Advisors Inc. increased its stake in Chesapeake Utilities by 4.9% during the 4th quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 2,313 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $281,000 after buying an additional 109 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.11% of the company's stock.

About Chesapeake Utilities

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.