Chesapeake Utilities Corporation $CPK Shares Sold by T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc.

Key Points

• T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. holds a 10.01% stake in Chesapeake Utilities Corporation, valued at approximately $300 million, after reducing its holdings by 1.6% in the first quarter.
• Chesapeake Utilities recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.685 per share, with an annualized yield of 2.2%, set to be paid on October 6th.
• Analysts have mixed views on Chesapeake Utilities, with ratings ranging from "strong buy" to "sell", and an average target price of $124.50.

T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. lowered its holdings in Chesapeake Utilities Corporation (NYSE:CPK - Free Report) by 1.6% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 2,336,111 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 37,964 shares during the quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. owned about 10.01% of Chesapeake Utilities worth $300,027,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Spire Wealth Management purchased a new position in shares of Chesapeake Utilities in the 1st quarter valued at about $26,000. NBC Securities Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Chesapeake Utilities in the 1st quarter valued at about $30,000. Byrne Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Chesapeake Utilities by 114.3% in the 1st quarter. Byrne Asset Management LLC now owns 270 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 144 shares during the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Chesapeake Utilities by 50.7% in the 1st quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 315 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $41,000 after acquiring an additional 106 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Rossby Financial LCC purchased a new position in shares of Chesapeake Utilities in the 1st quarter valued at about $61,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.11% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the company. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH raised Chesapeake Utilities to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Wall Street Zen cut Chesapeake Utilities from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. Finally, Barclays decreased their price objective on Chesapeake Utilities from $124.00 to $120.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $124.50.

Chesapeake Utilities Price Performance

Chesapeake Utilities stock traded down $0.39 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $124.03. 14,239 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 113,632. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 0.42 and a quick ratio of 0.36. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $122.34 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $124.89. The company has a market capitalization of $2.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.11 and a beta of 0.66. Chesapeake Utilities Corporation has a 12-month low of $115.12 and a 12-month high of $136.73.

Chesapeake Utilities (NYSE:CPK - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The utilities provider reported $1.04 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.00 by $0.04. Chesapeake Utilities had a return on equity of 9.20% and a net margin of 14.89%.The firm had revenue of $192.80 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $182.45 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.86 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 15.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Chesapeake Utilities has set its FY 2025 guidance at 6.150-6.35 EPS. Analysts forecast that Chesapeake Utilities Corporation will post 5.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Chesapeake Utilities Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, October 6th. Investors of record on Monday, September 15th will be issued a $0.685 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 15th. This represents a $2.74 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.2%. Chesapeake Utilities's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 48.84%.

Chesapeake Utilities Company Profile

Chesapeake Utilities Corporation operates as an energy delivery company. The company operates through two segments, Regulated Energy and Unregulated Energy. The Regulated Energy segment natural gas distribution operations in central and southern Delaware, Maryland's eastern shore, and Florida; regulated natural gas transmission in the Delmarva Peninsula, Ohio, and Florida; and regulated electric distribution in northeast and northwest Florida.