Boston Trust Walden Corp Sells 28,409 Shares of Unitil Corporation $UTL

Key Points

• Boston Trust Walden trimmed its stake in Unitil by 6.9%, selling 28,409 shares and ending the quarter with 385,232 shares (2.15% of the company) valued at about $18.66 million.
• Unitil beat quarterly expectations with $1.13 EPS versus a $1.03 consensus and revenue of $161.5 million; the company has a market cap around $929 million and a P/E of 17.21.
• Unitil increased its quarterly dividend to $0.475 ($1.90 annual, ~3.7% yield) and currently carries a consensus analyst rating of Hold with an average price target of $57.00.

Boston Trust Walden Corp trimmed its position in shares of Unitil Corporation (NYSE:UTL - Free Report) by 6.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 385,232 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 28,409 shares during the quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp owned 2.15% of Unitil worth $18,661,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its stake in Unitil by 1,119.6% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 309,935 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $14,833,000 after acquiring an additional 284,522 shares during the period. Reaves W H & Co. Inc. acquired a new position in Unitil in the third quarter valued at about $13,162,000. HITE Hedge Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Unitil in the third quarter valued at about $8,338,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its stake in Unitil by 17.8% in the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 717,423 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $37,414,000 after acquiring an additional 108,254 shares during the period. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in Unitil by 4.9% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,471,196 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $70,411,000 after acquiring an additional 68,820 shares during the period. 76.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Unitil Trading Down 0.2%

Shares of NYSE:UTL opened at $51.64 on Thursday. Unitil Corporation has a 12 month low of $44.61 and a 12 month high of $59.99. The company has a quick ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 0.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $52.65 and its 200 day simple moving average is $50.39. The firm has a market cap of $928.91 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.21 and a beta of 0.45.

Unitil (NYSE:UTL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 9th. The utilities provider reported $1.13 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.03 by $0.10. Unitil had a net margin of 9.37% and a return on equity of 9.38%. The business had revenue of $161.50 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $144.45 million. As a group, research analysts forecast that Unitil Corporation will post 3.31 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Unitil Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 27th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 12th were issued a dividend of $0.475 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 12th. This is a positive change from Unitil's previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. This represents a $1.90 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.7%. Unitil's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 63.33%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the company. Weiss Ratings reissued a "hold (c-)" rating on shares of Unitil in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Zacks Research raised Unitil to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, April 13th. Wall Street Zen cut Unitil from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, April 13th. Finally, Scotiabank started coverage on Unitil in a research note on Friday, April 10th. They issued a "sector perform" rating and a $57.00 target price for the company. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $57.00.

Unitil Company Profile

Unitil Corporation NYSE: UTL is a publicly traded energy delivery company that provides regulated electric and natural gas distribution services. The company delivers energy to residential, commercial and industrial customers through a network of distribution systems, offering safe and reliable service across its service areas. Unitil's operations include system maintenance, emergency response, meter reading and customer support functions, all governed by state regulatory commissions.

Headquartered in Hampton, New Hampshire, Unitil serves communities in New Hampshire, Massachusetts and Maine.

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