KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS Purchases Shares of 7,100 Unitil Co. (NYSE:UTL)

KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS acquired a new position in shares of Unitil Co. (NYSE:UTL) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 7,100 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $385,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of UTL. Cerity Partners LLC lifted its position in Unitil by 11.2% during the third quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 9,154 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $555,000 after purchasing an additional 920 shares during the last quarter. Centiva Capital LP purchased a new stake in shares of Unitil during the 3rd quarter valued at about $271,000. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Unitil in the 3rd quarter valued at about $5,827,000. State Street Corp increased its stake in Unitil by 6.1% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 723,587 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $43,835,000 after acquiring an additional 41,511 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP purchased a new stake in Unitil during the third quarter valued at approximately $1,400,000. 76.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Unitil Price Performance

Unitil stock opened at $57.01 on Friday. Unitil Co. has a 12-month low of $47.40 and a 12-month high of $63.52. The company has a current ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $55.81 and a 200-day moving average price of $56.83. The firm has a market capitalization of $926.18 million, a PE ratio of 19.46 and a beta of 0.60.

Unitil Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 28th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 13th were given a dividend of $0.45 per share. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.16%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 13th. This is a positive change from Unitil’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.43. Unitil’s payout ratio is 61.43%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, Guggenheim reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $55.00 target price on shares of Unitil in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th.

Unitil Profile

Unitil Corporation, a public utility holding company, engages in the distribution of electricity and natural gas. It operates through two segments, Utility Electric Operations, Utility Gas Operations. The company distributes electricity in the southeastern seacoast and state capital regions of New Hampshire, and the greater Fitchburg area of north central Massachusetts; and distributes natural gas in southeastern New Hampshire and portions of southern and central Maine, including the city of Portland and the Lewiston-Auburn area, as well as electricity and natural gas in the greater Fitchburg area of north central Massachusetts.