Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd Lowers Stock Position in Otter Tail Co. (NASDAQ:OTTR)

Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd trimmed its stake in Otter Tail Co. (NASDAQ:OTTR) by 11.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 3,485 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 432 shares during the period. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd’s holdings in Otter Tail were worth $257,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Creative Planning increased its stake in Otter Tail by 14.9% during the third quarter. Creative Planning now owns 7,218 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $564,000 after purchasing an additional 937 shares during the period. Covestor Ltd increased its stake in Otter Tail by 39.1% during the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,563 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $122,000 after buying an additional 439 shares during the period. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. lifted its holdings in Otter Tail by 9.9% during the 3rd quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. now owns 3,144 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $245,000 after buying an additional 283 shares in the last quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Otter Tail by 26.3% in the 3rd quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 26,641 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,082,000 after buying an additional 5,550 shares during the period. Finally, Versor Investments LP grew its stake in shares of Otter Tail by 59.7% in the third quarter. Versor Investments LP now owns 11,500 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $899,000 after acquiring an additional 4,300 shares in the last quarter. 61.32% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on OTTR shares. StockNews.com raised Otter Tail from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. Siebert Williams Shank upgraded shares of Otter Tail from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 6th.

Otter Tail Trading Down 2.5 %

Shares of Otter Tail stock opened at $78.89 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a quick ratio of 1.66 and a current ratio of 2.03. The company has a market capitalization of $3.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.00 and a beta of 0.57. Otter Tail Co. has a 1 year low of $71.66 and a 1 year high of $100.84. The company’s fifty day moving average is $77.65 and its two-hundred day moving average is $78.91.

Otter Tail (NASDAQ:OTTR) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 17th. The utilities provider reported $1.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.26 by $0.04. Otter Tail had a net margin of 22.67% and a return on equity of 18.96%. The business had revenue of $303.11 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $314.75 million. Analysts forecast that Otter Tail Co. will post 5.88 earnings per share for the current year.

Otter Tail Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.525 per share. This represents a $2.10 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.66%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. This is an increase from Otter Tail’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.47. Otter Tail’s payout ratio is 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.