Unitil Corporation (NYSE:UTL) Declares $0.47 Quarterly Dividend

Key Points

• Unitil declared a quarterly dividend of $0.475 per share, payable August 31 to shareholders of record on August 17. The dividend implies an annualized payout of $1.90 per share and a yield of approximately 3.4%.
• Unitil has raised its dividend for 12 consecutive years, with a current earnings payout ratio of 57.8%. Analysts expect the dividend to remain covered, projecting next year’s earnings at $3.51 per share.
• The company exceeded quarterly earnings expectations, reporting $1.88 per share versus the $1.86 consensus estimate, while analysts maintain a consensus “Hold” rating and an average price target of $56.50.

Unitil Corporation (NYSE:UTL - Get Free Report) announced a quarterly dividend on Tuesday, July 28th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 17th will be given a dividend of 0.475 per share by the utilities provider on Monday, August 31st. This represents a c) annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 17th.

Unitil has increased its dividend payment by an average of 0.0%annually over the last three years and has raised its dividend every year for the last 12 years. Unitil has a payout ratio of 57.8% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities analysts expect Unitil to earn $3.51 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.90 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 54.1%.

Unitil Stock Performance

Shares of UTL stock opened at $56.19 on Wednesday. The company's fifty day moving average price is $52.39 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $51.98. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.78 and a beta of 0.31. Unitil has a 12 month low of $44.61 and a 12 month high of $57.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 0.57 and a quick ratio of 0.53.

Unitil (NYSE:UTL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 4th. The utilities provider reported $1.88 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.86 by $0.02. Unitil had a net margin of 9.60% and a return on equity of 9.89%. The business had revenue of $216.90 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $179.13 million. On average, research analysts anticipate that Unitil will post 3.31 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

UTL has been the subject of a number of research reports. Scotiabank began coverage on shares of Unitil in a research note on Friday, April 10th. They set a "sector perform" rating and a $57.00 target price for the company. Wells Fargo & Company assumed coverage on shares of Unitil in a research note on Monday, May 11th. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $56.00 price target on the stock. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Unitil from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, April 13th. Freedom Capital cut shares of Unitil from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of Unitil in a report on Monday, June 29th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $56.50.

About Unitil

Unitil Corporation NYSE: UTL is a publicly traded energy delivery company that provides regulated electric and natural gas distribution services. The company delivers energy to residential, commercial and industrial customers through a network of distribution systems, offering safe and reliable service across its service areas. Unitil's operations include system maintenance, emergency response, meter reading and customer support functions, all governed by state regulatory commissions.

Headquartered in Hampton, New Hampshire, Unitil serves communities in New Hampshire, Massachusetts and Maine.

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