JPMorgan Chase & Co. Grows Position in Otter Tail Co. (NASDAQ:OTTR)

JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its holdings in Otter Tail Co. (NASDAQ:OTTR - Free Report) by 93.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 189,345 shares of the utilities provider's stock after acquiring an additional 91,516 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. owned 0.45% of Otter Tail worth $13,981,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Quantinno Capital Management LP grew its holdings in shares of Otter Tail by 6.6% during the 3rd quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 2,614 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $204,000 after purchasing an additional 162 shares during the period. Stifel Financial Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Otter Tail during the third quarter valued at about $238,000. State Street Corp raised its stake in shares of Otter Tail by 1.1% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,598,531 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $124,941,000 after acquiring an additional 18,109 shares during the period. MML Investors Services LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Otter Tail by 6.6% in the 3rd quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 5,186 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $405,000 after acquiring an additional 321 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Otter Tail during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $306,000. 61.32% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Otter Tail Trading Up 0.8 %

NASDAQ:OTTR traded up $0.64 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $79.17. 39,694 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 268,713. Otter Tail Co. has a twelve month low of $71.66 and a twelve month high of $100.84. The company has a quick ratio of 1.66, a current ratio of 2.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57. The business has a 50-day moving average of $80.09 and a two-hundred day moving average of $78.60. The company has a market capitalization of $3.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.04 and a beta of 0.49.

Otter Tail (NASDAQ:OTTR - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Monday, February 17th. The utilities provider reported $1.30 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.26 by $0.04. Otter Tail had a return on equity of 18.96% and a net margin of 22.67%. The company had revenue of $303.11 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $314.75 million. On average, equities analysts predict that Otter Tail Co. will post 5.88 EPS for the current year.

Otter Tail Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th were given a $0.525 dividend. This represents a $2.10 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.65%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. This is a boost from Otter Tail's previous quarterly dividend of $0.47. Otter Tail's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 29.29%.

Otter Tail Profile

Otter Tail Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, engages in electric utility, manufacturing, and plastic pipe businesses in the United States. It operates through three segments: Electric, Manufacturing, and Plastics. The Electric segment produces, transmits, distributes, and sells electric energy in Minnesota, North Dakota, and South Dakota; and operates as a participant in the Midcontinent Independent System Operator markets.