Principal Financial Group Inc. Raises Stock Holdings in Black Hills Co. (NYSE:BKH)

Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its position in Black Hills Co. (NYSE:BKH) by 3.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 211,325 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 7,771 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned approximately 0.30% of Black Hills worth $12,367,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its position in shares of Black Hills by 181.5% in the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 473 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 305 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Black Hills by 84.9% in the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 577 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 265 shares during the period. UMB Bank n.a. grew its holdings in shares of Black Hills by 83.3% in the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 625 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 284 shares during the last quarter. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new position in shares of Black Hills during the third quarter valued at about $45,000. Finally, Point72 DIFC Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Black Hills in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $82,000. Institutional investors own 86.71% of the company’s stock.

Black Hills Stock Up 0.4 %

NYSE:BKH opened at $60.48 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $58.64 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $59.83. The firm has a market cap of $4.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.43, a P/E/G ratio of 2.75 and a beta of 0.73. Black Hills Co. has a fifty-two week low of $50.72 and a fifty-two week high of $65.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a current ratio of 0.97.

Black Hills (NYSE:BKH) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.37 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.20 by $0.17. Black Hills had a net margin of 12.84% and a return on equity of 7.82%. Analysts predict that Black Hills Co. will post 4.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Black Hills Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, March 1st. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be given a dividend of $0.676 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 18th. This is a boost from Black Hills’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.65. This represents a $2.70 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.47%. Black Hills’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 68.88%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Scotiabank reduced their target price on Black Hills from $67.00 to $66.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 7th.

Black Hills Profile

Black Hills Corporation, through its subsidiaries, operates as an electric and natural gas utility company in the United States. The company operates in two segments: Electric Utilities and Gas Utilities. The Electric Utilities segment generates, transmits, and distributes electricity to approximately 222,000 electric utility customers in Colorado, Montana, South Dakota, and Wyoming; and owns and operates 1,394 megawatts of generation capacity and 9,106 miles of electric transmission and distribution lines.