Annex Advisory Services LLC Raises Stake in Unitil Co. (NYSE:UTL)

Annex Advisory Services LLC increased its position in shares of Unitil Co. (NYSE:UTL - Free Report) by 119.2% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 47,111 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 25,623 shares during the quarter. Annex Advisory Services LLC owned 0.29% of Unitil worth $2,718,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of UTL. Sterling Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Unitil by 798.2% during the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 512 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 455 shares during the period. US Bancorp DE lifted its position in Unitil by 8,333.3% during the fourth quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 2,024 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $110,000 after purchasing an additional 2,000 shares during the period. Aquatic Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Unitil during the fourth quarter worth about $166,000. Lido Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Unitil during the fourth quarter worth about $221,000. Finally, Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC bought a new stake in Unitil during the fourth quarter worth about $244,000. Institutional investors own 76.76% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Guggenheim reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $55.00 price objective on shares of Unitil in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th.

Unitil Price Performance

Shares of UTL stock traded down $0.51 on Friday, reaching $52.77. The company had a trading volume of 47,311 shares, compared to its average volume of 63,617. The stock has a market capitalization of $857.48 million, a PE ratio of 18.01 and a beta of 0.65. The company has a quick ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25. Unitil Co. has a one year low of $48.94 and a one year high of $63.52. The business's 50-day moving average is $56.30 and its 200 day moving average is $55.85.

Unitil (NYSE:UTL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 6th. The utilities provider reported $1.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.78 by ($0.04). Unitil had a net margin of 9.52% and a return on equity of 9.36%. The business had revenue of $207.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $193.03 million. Equities research analysts forecast that Unitil Co. will post 3.08 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Unitil Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 30th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 15th were given a $0.45 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 15th. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.41%. Unitil's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 61.43%.

Unitil Company Profile

Unitil Corporation, a public utility holding company, engages in the distribution of electricity and natural gas. It operates through two segments, Utility Electric Operations, Utility Gas Operations. The company distributes electricity in the southeastern seacoast and state capital regions of New Hampshire, and the greater Fitchburg area of north central Massachusetts; and distributes natural gas in southeastern New Hampshire and portions of southern and central Maine, including the city of Portland and the Lewiston-Auburn area, as well as electricity and natural gas in the greater Fitchburg area of north central Massachusetts.