Dean Capital Management Takes Position in Chesapeake Utilities Corporation $CPK

Key Points

• Dean Capital Management initiated a new position in Chesapeake Utilities, buying 27,851 shares worth about $3.48 million and making CPK its 11th-largest holding.
• Chesapeake Utilities reported strong quarterly results, with EPS of $2.47 beating estimates and revenue of $353.1 million topping forecasts; revenue also rose 18.2% year over year.
• The company raised its quarterly dividend to $0.735 per share from $0.69, bringing the annualized payout to $2.94 and the yield to about 2.4%.

Dean Capital Management purchased a new stake in Chesapeake Utilities Corporation (NYSE:CPK - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 27,851 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $3,475,000. Chesapeake Utilities accounts for approximately 1.5% of Dean Capital Management's holdings, making the stock its 11th largest holding. Dean Capital Management owned approximately 0.12% of Chesapeake Utilities as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in CPK. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Chesapeake Utilities by 2.5% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,020,146 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $252,033,000 after acquiring an additional 49,789 shares during the period. State Street Corp increased its position in shares of Chesapeake Utilities by 0.8% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,257,589 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $152,023,000 after purchasing an additional 9,556 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its position in shares of Chesapeake Utilities by 27.6% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 952,045 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $128,231,000 after purchasing an additional 205,742 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. raised its stake in Chesapeake Utilities by 3.0% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 590,793 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $79,574,000 after purchasing an additional 16,993 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Chesapeake Utilities by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 554,714 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $69,217,000 after purchasing an additional 6,808 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.11% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Chesapeake Utilities

In related news, CEO Jeffry M. Householder sold 10,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $126.12, for a total transaction of $1,261,200.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 63,001 shares in the company, valued at $7,945,686.12. The trade was a 13.70% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP Kevin J. Webber sold 2,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $127.37, for a total value of $254,740.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 12,652 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,611,485.24. The trade was a 13.65% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 1.36% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Chesapeake Utilities Stock Up 0.4%

Shares of NYSE CPK opened at $120.53 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $2.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.32 and a beta of 0.69. The company has a current ratio of 0.43, a quick ratio of 0.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80. Chesapeake Utilities Corporation has a 12 month low of $118.83 and a 12 month high of $140.59. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $125.60 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $127.46.

Chesapeake Utilities (NYSE:CPK - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The utilities provider reported $2.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.38 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $353.10 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $339.86 million. Chesapeake Utilities had a net margin of 15.11% and a return on equity of 9.53%. The firm's revenue was up 18.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.22 EPS. Chesapeake Utilities has set its FY 2028 guidance at 7.750-8.00 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Chesapeake Utilities Corporation will post 6.51 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Chesapeake Utilities Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 6th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.735 per share. This represents a $2.94 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.4%. This is a boost from Chesapeake Utilities's previous quarterly dividend of $0.69. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 15th. Chesapeake Utilities's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 47.12%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have commented on CPK shares. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Chesapeake Utilities from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, March 14th. Barclays set a $142.00 price target on shares of Chesapeake Utilities and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Wells Fargo & Company started coverage on shares of Chesapeake Utilities in a research report on Tuesday, May 12th. They set an "equal weight" rating and a $132.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded Chesapeake Utilities from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a report on Friday, June 12th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Chesapeake Utilities presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $137.00.

Chesapeake Utilities Profile

Chesapeake Utilities Corporation NYSE: CPK is a diversified energy services holding company headquartered in Dover, Delaware. Through its operating subsidiaries, the company engages in natural gas distribution, transmission and storage; propane distribution; wholesale propane supply; and contract compression and natural gas liquids processing. Its core mission is to provide safe, reliable and cost-effective energy solutions to residential, commercial and industrial customers across multiple U.S.

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