Black Hills Co. (NYSE:BKH) Shares Bought by Atria Investments Inc

Atria Investments Inc boosted its holdings in shares of Black Hills Co. (NYSE:BKH) by 43.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 8,407 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 2,533 shares during the period. Atria Investments Inc’s holdings in Black Hills were worth $492,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Black Hills by 66.8% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 432 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 173 shares during the period. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its holdings 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 during the period. Global Retirement Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Black Hills by 373.2% in the fourth quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 530 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 418 shares during the period. UMB Bank n.a. increased 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 valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 284 shares during the period. Finally, Marshall Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Black Hills in the fourth quarter valued at about $54,000. 86.71% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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

Black Hills Stock Up 3.3 %

Shares of BKH opened at $61.27 on Friday. Black Hills Co. has a 52 week low of $50.72 and a 52 week high of $65.59. The company has a quick ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19. The company has a market capitalization of $4.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.63, a PEG ratio of 2.75 and a beta of 0.68. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $59.05 and its 200-day moving average price is $60.04.

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

Black Hills Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, March 1st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th were given a dividend of $0.676 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $2.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.41%. This is an increase from Black Hills’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.65. Black Hills’s dividend payout ratio is currently 68.88%.

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.