XTX Topco Ltd Acquires Shares of 16,144 Black Hills Corporation (NYSE:BKH)

Key Points

• XTX Topco Ltd acquired a new stake in Black Hills Corporation, purchasing 16,144 shares valued at approximately $979,000.
• Several institutional investors, including Capital Research Global Investors and First Trust Advisors LP, have significantly increased their holdings in Black Hills, which now has 86.71% of its stock owned by institutions.
• BMO Capital Markets has begun coverage on Black Hills, giving the stock an "outperform" rating with a price target of $68.00.

XTX Topco Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Black Hills Corporation (NYSE:BKH - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 16,144 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $979,000.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. First Trust Advisors LP raised its stake in Black Hills by 309.5% during the fourth quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 953,431 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $55,795,000 after purchasing an additional 720,628 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE grew its position in Black Hills by 203.6% in the fourth quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 507,986 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $29,727,000 after acquiring an additional 340,686 shares during the period. Capital Research Global Investors grew its position in Black Hills by 21.5% in the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 1,845,088 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $107,975,000 after acquiring an additional 326,959 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC grew its position in Black Hills by 113.6% in the fourth quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 463,459 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $27,122,000 after acquiring an additional 246,500 shares during the period. Finally, Bessemer Group Inc. grew its position in Black Hills by 38,974.6% in the first quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 218,818 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $13,272,000 after acquiring an additional 218,258 shares during the period. 86.71% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Black Hills Trading Up 1.8%

Black Hills stock traded up $1.07 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $58.89. The company's stock had a trading volume of 644,159 shares, compared to its average volume of 515,117. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.27 billion, a PE ratio of 14.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.68 and a beta of 0.71. Black Hills Corporation has a 1 year low of $54.92 and a 1 year high of $65.59. The company has a current ratio of 0.64, a quick ratio of 0.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06. The stock's fifty day moving average is $57.01 and its two-hundred day moving average is $58.67.

Black Hills (NYSE:BKH - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The utilities provider reported $0.38 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.38. Black Hills had a return on equity of 7.81% and a net margin of 12.68%. The company had revenue of $439.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $412.69 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.33 earnings per share. Black Hills's quarterly revenue was up 8.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts anticipate that Black Hills Corporation will post 4.12 EPS for the current year.

Black Hills Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 2nd. Investors of record on Monday, August 18th will be issued a dividend of $0.676 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 18th. This represents a $2.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.6%. Black Hills's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 68.01%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, BMO Capital Markets started coverage on Black Hills in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $68.00 price objective for the company.

About Black Hills

Black Hills Corporation, through its subsidiaries, operates as an electric and natural gas utility company in the United States. The company operates in two segments: Electric Utilities and Gas Utilities. The Electric Utilities segment generates, transmits, and distributes electricity to approximately 222,000 electric utility customers in Colorado, Montana, South Dakota, and Wyoming; and owns and operates 1,394 megawatts of generation capacity and 9,106 miles of electric transmission and distribution lines.