Proficio Capital Partners LLC Buys Shares of 11,528 Chesapeake Utilities Co. (NYSE:CPK)

Proficio Capital Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Chesapeake Utilities Co. (NYSE:CPK) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 11,528 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,399,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC owned approximately 0.05% of Chesapeake Utilities at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its position in Chesapeake Utilities by 2,018.2% during the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 233 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 222 shares in the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. boosted its position in shares of Chesapeake Utilities by 19.2% in the 3rd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 634 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $79,000 after purchasing an additional 102 shares in the last quarter. KBC Group NV boosted its position in shares of Chesapeake Utilities by 46.2% in the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,048 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $127,000 after purchasing an additional 331 shares in the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new stake in shares of Chesapeake Utilities in the 3rd quarter worth $182,000. Finally, Private Advisor Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Chesapeake Utilities in the 3rd quarter worth $202,000. Institutional investors own 83.11% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Guggenheim raised their price objective on Chesapeake Utilities from $118.00 to $129.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. StockNews.com raised Chesapeake Utilities from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday.

Chesapeake Utilities Stock Performance

Shares of CPK stock opened at $130.37 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.44 and a beta of 0.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a current ratio of 0.38 and a quick ratio of 0.32. The business has a fifty day moving average of $122.74 and a 200 day moving average of $122.71. Chesapeake Utilities Co. has a 1 year low of $98.32 and a 1 year high of $134.20.

Chesapeake Utilities (NYSE:CPK) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The utilities provider reported $1.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.67 by ($0.04). The firm had revenue of $215.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $237.84 million. Chesapeake Utilities had a return on equity of 9.08% and a net margin of 14.16%. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.64 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Chesapeake Utilities Co. will post 5.39 earnings per share for the current year.

Chesapeake Utilities Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 7th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.64 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $2.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.96%. Chesapeake Utilities’s payout ratio is currently 48.58%.

About Chesapeake Utilities

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.