Chesapeake Utilities (NYSE:CPK) Trading 1.3% Higher

Chesapeake Utilities Co. (NYSE:CPK - Get Free Report) was up 1.3% during trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as $102.50 and last traded at $102.02. Approximately 31,403 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 77% from the average daily volume of 139,566 shares. The stock had previously closed at $100.72.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on CPK shares. StockNews.com downgraded Chesapeake Utilities from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 29th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Chesapeake Utilities from $101.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, February 23rd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on Chesapeake Utilities from $123.00 to $124.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, March 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $107.00.

Chesapeake Utilities Price Performance

The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $103.53 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $99.76. 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 $2.27 billion, a PE ratio of 21.57 and a beta of 0.60.

Chesapeake Utilities (NYSE:CPK - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 21st. The utilities provider reported $1.64 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.53 by $0.11. The company had revenue of $185.30 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $234.60 million. Chesapeake Utilities had a return on equity of 10.19% and a net margin of 13.01%. The business's quarterly revenue was down 1.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.47 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Chesapeake Utilities Co. will post 5.41 earnings per share for the current year.

Chesapeake Utilities Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 5th. Investors of record on Friday, March 15th were given a dividend of $0.59 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 14th. This represents a $2.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.31%. Chesapeake Utilities's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 49.89%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Chesapeake Utilities

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Cox Capital Mgt LLC raised its holdings in Chesapeake Utilities by 1.2% during the first quarter. Cox Capital Mgt LLC now owns 10,986 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,179,000 after acquiring an additional 129 shares in the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its holdings in Chesapeake Utilities by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 16,497 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,743,000 after acquiring an additional 155 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in Chesapeake Utilities by 23.8% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,740,123 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $183,809,000 after acquiring an additional 334,088 shares in the last quarter. Fortis Group Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Chesapeake Utilities by 100.0% during the fourth quarter. Fortis Group Advisors LLC now owns 292 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 146 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its holdings in Chesapeake Utilities by 60.1% during the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 228,507 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $24,137,000 after acquiring an additional 85,801 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 83.11% of the company's stock.

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.