Ameriprise Financial Inc. Sells 245,389 Shares of Black Hills Co. (NYSE:BKH)

Ameriprise Financial Inc. cut its position in Black Hills Co. (NYSE:BKH - Free Report) by 63.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 142,717 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 245,389 shares during the quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. owned 0.20% of Black Hills worth $8,352,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its position in Black Hills by 66.8% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 432 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 173 shares in the last quarter. Barnett & Company Inc. increased its position in Black Hills by 2.7% during the 4th quarter. Barnett & Company Inc. now owns 7,500 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $439,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in Black Hills by 8.2% during the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,919 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $171,000 after purchasing an additional 222 shares in the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. increased its position in Black Hills by 4.1% during the 4th quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 6,716 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $393,000 after purchasing an additional 263 shares in the last quarter. Finally, State of Alaska Department of Revenue increased its position in Black Hills by 3.4% during the 4th quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 8,162 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $477,000 after purchasing an additional 270 shares in the last quarter. 86.71% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Black Hills Trading Up 0.9%

NYSE BKH traded up $0.51 on Monday, hitting $58.07. The company's stock had a trading volume of 343,293 shares, compared to its average volume of 452,131. The company has a quick ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19. Black Hills Co. has a 1-year low of $51.66 and a 1-year high of $65.59. The company's 50-day moving average is $59.43 and its 200 day moving average is $59.82. The firm has a market cap of $4.21 billion, a PE ratio of 14.81, a PEG ratio of 2.75 and a beta of 0.74.

Black Hills (NYSE:BKH - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The utilities provider reported $1.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.92 by ($0.05). Black Hills had a net margin of 12.84% and a return on equity of 7.82%. The business had revenue of $805.20 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $729.73 million. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.87 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 10.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that Black Hills Co. will post 4.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Black Hills Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 16th will be given a $0.676 dividend. This represents a $2.70 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.66%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 16th. Black Hills's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 68.88%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently issued reports on BKH. BMO Capital Markets began coverage on shares of Black Hills in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $68.00 price objective for the company. Scotiabank lowered their price objective on shares of Black Hills from $67.00 to $66.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 7th.

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.