Unitil Corporation $UTL Stock: Boston Trust Walden Corp Trims Stake

Key Points

• Boston Trust Walden cut its Unitil stake by 5.6% in the third quarter, selling 18,008 shares; it retained 304,904 shares, or 1.67% of the utility.
• Unitil reported quarterly EPS of -$0.04, beating analyst estimates of -$0.06, while revenue of $112.6 million fell slightly short of expectations. The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.475 per share, equivalent to a 3.4% yield.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed: Unitil has an average “Hold” rating and a consensus price target of $58.67, though Huntington initiated coverage with a “Strong Buy.”

Boston Trust Walden Corp trimmed its position in Unitil Corporation (NYSE:UTL - Free Report) by 5.6% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 304,904 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 18,008 shares during the quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp owned 1.67% of Unitil worth $15,477,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in UTL. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Unitil during the second quarter worth $152,441,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company bought a new stake in shares of Unitil in the second quarter valued at about $26,864,000. Heartland Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Unitil in the second quarter valued at about $12,242,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new position in shares of Unitil in the second quarter valued at about $5,730,000. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE acquired a new position in shares of Unitil in the second quarter valued at about $5,314,000. Institutional investors own 76.76% of the company's stock.

Unitil Trading Up 0.2%

Shares of Unitil stock opened at $56.65 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 0.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15. Unitil Corporation has a 12-month low of $46.91 and a 12-month high of $58.33. The company has a market capitalization of $1.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.22 and a beta of 0.27. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $53.14 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $52.54.

Unitil (NYSE:UTL - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Monday, November 2nd. The utilities provider reported ($0.04) EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.06) by $0.02. Unitil had a net margin of 9.16% and a return on equity of 9.19%. The company had revenue of $112.60 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $113.11 million. On average, analysts forecast that Unitil Corporation will post 3.31 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Unitil Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 13th will be given a dividend of $0.4750 per share. This represents a $1.90 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.4%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 13th. Unitil's payout ratio is currently 59.94%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have weighed in on UTL. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Unitil from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Huntington initiated coverage on shares of Unitil in a research report on Wednesday. They set a "strong-buy" rating on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Unitil has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $58.67.

Unitil Company Profile

Unitil Corporation is a regulated public utility holding company that delivers electricity and natural gas to residential, commercial and industrial customers in New Hampshire and Massachusetts. Its operations focus primarily on the distribution of energy through local utility networks rather than the production of electricity or natural gas.

Through its operating subsidiaries, Unitil provides electric distribution service in portions of New Hampshire and Massachusetts and natural gas distribution service in parts of southern New Hampshire and central Massachusetts.

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