Unitil Co. (NYSE:UTL) Shares Bought by UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC

UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its stake in Unitil Co. (NYSE:UTL - Free Report) by 18.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 56,721 shares of the utilities provider's stock after acquiring an additional 8,640 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC owned 0.35% of Unitil worth $3,074,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Barclays PLC raised its holdings in Unitil by 139.7% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 32,834 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,989,000 after purchasing an additional 19,134 shares in the last quarter. US Bancorp DE increased its position in Unitil by 8,333.3% during the 4th quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 2,024 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $110,000 after purchasing an additional 2,000 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp increased its position in Unitil by 11.8% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 186,079 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $10,084,000 after purchasing an additional 19,631 shares during the period. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Unitil during the 4th quarter worth approximately $485,000. Finally, Anchor Capital Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Unitil by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Anchor Capital Advisors LLC now owns 31,181 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,690,000 after buying an additional 460 shares during the period. 76.76% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Guggenheim reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $55.00 price objective on shares of Unitil in a report on Wednesday, February 12th.

Unitil Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:UTL traded up $0.10 on Monday, reaching $53.05. 41,355 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 63,528. The company has a 50-day moving average of $56.30 and a 200-day moving average of $55.85. The company has a current ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25. The firm has a market cap of $862.10 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.11 and a beta of 0.65. Unitil Co. has a 1-year low of $48.94 and a 1-year high of $63.52.

Unitil (NYSE:UTL - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The utilities provider reported $1.74 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.78 by ($0.04). Unitil had a return on equity of 9.36% and a net margin of 9.52%. The company had revenue of $207.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $193.03 million. Equities analysts forecast that Unitil Co. will post 3.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Unitil Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 30th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 15th were paid a $0.45 dividend. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.39%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 15th. Unitil's payout ratio is currently 61.43%.

Unitil Company Profile

Unitil Corporation, a public utility holding company, engages in the distribution of electricity and natural gas. It operates through two segments, Utility Electric Operations, Utility Gas Operations. The company distributes electricity in the southeastern seacoast and state capital regions of New Hampshire, and the greater Fitchburg area of north central Massachusetts; and distributes natural gas in southeastern New Hampshire and portions of southern and central Maine, including the city of Portland and the Lewiston-Auburn area, as well as electricity and natural gas in the greater Fitchburg area of north central Massachusetts.