Proficio Capital Partners LLC Purchases New Shares in Otter Tail Co. (NASDAQ:OTTR)

Proficio Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Otter Tail Co. (NASDAQ:OTTR) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 15,802 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,167,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of OTTR. Covestor Ltd raised its position 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 last quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. raised its position 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 during the last quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC raised its position in Otter Tail by 26.3% during the 3rd quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 26,641 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,082,000 after buying an additional 5,550 shares during the last quarter. Versor Investments LP raised its position in Otter Tail by 59.7% during the 3rd quarter. Versor Investments LP now owns 11,500 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $899,000 after buying an additional 4,300 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Entropy Technologies LP purchased a new position in Otter Tail during the 3rd quarter worth $668,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 61.32% of the company’s stock.

Otter Tail Stock Performance

Shares of OTTR opened at $81.19 on Friday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $77.94 and a 200-day simple moving average of $78.87. The company has a quick ratio of 1.66, a current ratio of 2.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57. The company has a market capitalization of $3.40 billion, a PE ratio of 11.32 and a beta of 0.53. Otter Tail Co. has a 52-week low of $71.66 and a 52-week high of $100.84.

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

Otter Tail Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be issued a $0.525 dividend. This represents a $2.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.59%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. This is an increase from Otter Tail’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.47. Otter Tail’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 29.29%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Otter Tail from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 14th.

About Otter Tail

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.