Chesapeake Utilities (NYSE:CPK) Given New $115.00 Price Target at Wells Fargo & Company

Chesapeake Utilities (NYSE:CPK - Free Report) had its price objective raised by Wells Fargo & Company from $105.00 to $115.00 in a research note released on Friday morning, Benzinga reports. Wells Fargo & Company currently has an equal weight rating on the utilities provider's stock.

CPK has been the subject of several other reports. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on shares of Chesapeake Utilities from $123.00 to $124.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a research report on Friday, March 1st. StockNews.com lowered shares of Chesapeake Utilities from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research report on Thursday, February 29th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $109.50.

Chesapeake Utilities Stock Up 0.3 %

CPK stock traded up $0.31 during trading on Friday, reaching $111.72. 79,030 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 83,555. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $105.12 and a 200 day simple moving average of $101.45. Chesapeake Utilities has a 12 month low of $83.79 and a 12 month high of $132.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 0.40 and a current ratio of 0.48. The company has a market capitalization of $2.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.62 and a beta of 0.60.

Chesapeake Utilities (NYSE:CPK - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 8th. The utilities provider reported $2.10 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.14 by ($0.04). The firm had revenue of $245.70 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $260.16 million. Chesapeake Utilities had a net margin of 13.01% and a return on equity of 10.19%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 12.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.04 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Chesapeake Utilities will post 5.41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Chesapeake Utilities Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 5th. Investors of record on Friday, June 14th will be given a $0.64 dividend. This is a positive change from Chesapeake Utilities's previous quarterly dividend of $0.59. This represents a $2.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.29%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 14th. Chesapeake Utilities's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 49.89%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Chesapeake Utilities

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in Chesapeake Utilities during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,060,000. Strs Ohio raised its position in Chesapeake Utilities by 83.7% during the 4th quarter. Strs Ohio now owns 81,200 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $8,577,000 after buying an additional 37,000 shares during the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC purchased a new position in Chesapeake Utilities during the 4th quarter worth approximately $35,265,000. Cornercap Investment Counsel Inc. purchased a new position in Chesapeake Utilities during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,078,000. Finally, Tributary Capital Management LLC raised its position in Chesapeake Utilities by 11.7% during the 4th quarter. Tributary Capital Management LLC now owns 122,322 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $12,921,000 after buying an additional 12,764 shares during the last quarter. 83.11% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.