Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. Has $251,000 Stake in Chesapeake Utilities Co. (NYSE:CPK)

Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. decreased its position in shares of Chesapeake Utilities Co. (NYSE:CPK) by 23.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,063 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 645 shares during the quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc.’s holdings in Chesapeake Utilities were worth $251,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of CPK. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its position in Chesapeake Utilities by 2,018.2% in the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 233 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 222 shares in the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. increased its position in Chesapeake Utilities by 19.2% in the 3rd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 634 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $79,000 after buying an additional 102 shares in the last quarter. nVerses Capital LLC bought a new stake in Chesapeake Utilities in the 3rd quarter valued at about $99,000. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in Chesapeake Utilities by 64.0% in the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,038 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $129,000 after buying an additional 405 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new stake in Chesapeake Utilities in the 3rd quarter valued at about $182,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.11% of the company’s stock.

Chesapeake Utilities Stock Up 2.4 %

Shares of Chesapeake Utilities stock opened at $124.03 on Tuesday. 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 company has a 50-day moving average of $124.43 and a 200 day moving average of $121.22. The firm has a market cap of $2.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.16 and a beta of 0.65. Chesapeake Utilities Co. has a 1 year low of $98.25 and a 1 year high of $134.20.

Chesapeake Utilities (NYSE:CPK) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The utilities provider reported $0.80 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.69 by $0.11. Chesapeake Utilities had a net margin of 14.16% and a return on equity of 9.08%. The business had revenue of $160.14 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $164.80 million. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.69 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Chesapeake Utilities Co. will post 5.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Chesapeake Utilities Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, January 6th. Investors of record on Monday, December 16th were issued a $0.64 dividend. This represents a $2.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.06%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 16th. Chesapeake Utilities’s payout ratio is 51.93%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the company. StockNews.com upgraded Chesapeake Utilities from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Guggenheim lifted their price target on Chesapeake Utilities from $118.00 to $129.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Finally, Barclays lifted their price target on Chesapeake Utilities from $118.00 to $124.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $123.00.

Chesapeake Utilities Profile

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.