Heartland Advisors Inc. Buys Shares of 232,349 Unitil Corporation $UTL

Key Points

• Heartland Advisors purchased 232,349 Unitil shares worth approximately $12.2 million, acquiring a 1.27% stake. Institutional investors collectively own 76.76% of the utility company.
• Unitil reported quarterly EPS of $0.29, exceeding analyst estimates of $0.26, on revenue of $113.19 million. Analysts maintain a consensus “Hold” rating with an average price target of $56.50.
• Unitil declared a quarterly dividend of $0.475 per share, equivalent to $1.90 annually and a 3.6% yield. Shares recently opened at $53.35, down 1.5%.

Heartland Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in Unitil Corporation (NYSE:UTL - Free Report) during the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm purchased 232,349 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $12,242,000. Heartland Advisors Inc. owned 1.27% of Unitil at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in UTL. BlackRock Inc. bought a new stake in Unitil during the second quarter valued at about $152,441,000. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in Unitil by 4.6% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,538,652 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $74,532,000 after purchasing an additional 67,456 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its holdings in Unitil by 4.5% in the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 721,277 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $34,939,000 after purchasing an additional 31,186 shares in the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company lifted its position in shares of Unitil by 17.8% during 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 buying an additional 108,254 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its position in shares of Unitil by 94.0% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 601,260 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $29,125,000 after buying an additional 291,325 shares during the last quarter. 76.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

UTL has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Unitil from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a report on Monday. Freedom Capital lowered shares of Unitil from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company started coverage on shares of Unitil in a research report on Monday, May 11th. They set an "equal weight" rating and a $56.00 target price for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $56.50.

Unitil Stock Down 1.5%

Shares of UTL stock opened at $53.35 on Friday. Unitil Corporation has a 1-year low of $44.61 and a 1-year high of $57.26. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $53.48 and its 200 day moving average price is $52.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 0.49 and a quick ratio of 0.45. The company has a market cap of $972.94 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.83 and a beta of 0.31.

Unitil (NYSE:UTL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 3rd. The utilities provider reported $0.29 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.26 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $113.19 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $113.19 million. Unitil had a return on equity of 9.53% and a net margin of 9.49%. On average, research analysts expect that Unitil Corporation will post 3.31 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Unitil Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 17th will be issued a dividend of $0.475 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 17th. This represents a $1.90 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.6%. Unitil's dividend payout ratio is 59.94%.

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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