Otter Tail Co. (NASDAQ:OTTR) Shares Purchased by Avantax Advisory Services Inc.

Avantax Advisory Services Inc. increased its holdings in Otter Tail Co. (NASDAQ:OTTR) by 23.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 6,736 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,261 shares during the quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc.’s holdings in Otter Tail were worth $497,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Edgestream Partners L.P. raised its stake in shares of Otter Tail by 7.7% during the 4th quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. now owns 83,370 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $6,156,000 after buying an additional 5,926 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in Otter Tail during the fourth quarter worth $2,672,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in Otter Tail during the fourth quarter worth $1,167,000. Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Otter Tail by 61.1% in the fourth quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 115,211 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $8,507,000 after purchasing an additional 43,693 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Otter Tail by 5.4% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 536,545 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $39,618,000 after acquiring an additional 27,415 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 61.32% of the company’s stock.

Otter Tail Trading Down 1.8 %

Shares of OTTR opened at $80.87 on Friday. Otter Tail Co. has a 52-week low of $71.66 and a 52-week high of $100.84. The stock has a market cap of $3.39 billion, a PE ratio of 11.28 and a beta of 0.53. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $79.69 and its two-hundred day moving average is $78.54. The company has a quick ratio of 1.66, a current ratio of 2.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57.

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

Otter Tail Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th were paid a $0.525 dividend. This is a boost from Otter Tail’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.47. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. This represents a $2.10 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.60%. Otter Tail’s dividend payout ratio is 29.29%.

Otter Tail Profile

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.