Chesapeake Utilities Co. (NYSE:CPK) Position Lifted by Renaissance Technologies LLC

Renaissance Technologies LLC raised its stake in shares of Chesapeake Utilities Co. (NYSE:CPK) by 40.4% during the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 26,050 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 7,500 shares during the quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC owned approximately 0.12% of Chesapeake Utilities worth $2,767,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Wealthspire Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Chesapeake Utilities by 0.3% during the 1st quarter. Wealthspire Advisors LLC now owns 29,251 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $3,139,000 after acquiring an additional 95 shares during the last quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund raised its holdings in shares of Chesapeake Utilities by 0.8% during the first quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund now owns 12,191 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,308,000 after purchasing an additional 99 shares during the period. New York State Teachers Retirement System raised its holdings in shares of Chesapeake Utilities by 1.8% during the first quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System now owns 5,657 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $607,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the period. Tradewinds Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Chesapeake Utilities by 10.2% during the first quarter. Tradewinds Capital Management LLC now owns 1,084 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $116,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the period. Finally, Fifth Third Bancorp raised its holdings in shares of Chesapeake Utilities by 17.7% during the second quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 765 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $81,000 after purchasing an additional 115 shares during the period. 83.11% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, Barclays increased their target price on shares of Chesapeake Utilities from $111.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 13th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Chesapeake Utilities has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $111.20.

Chesapeake Utilities Stock Up 0.6 %

CPK stock opened at $124.10 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 0.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91. Chesapeake Utilities Co. has a fifty-two week low of $83.79 and a fifty-two week high of $125.34. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $118.50 and its 200 day simple moving average is $111.37. The stock has a market cap of $2.76 billion, a PE ratio of 26.07 and a beta of 0.60.

Chesapeake Utilities (NYSE:CPK) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 8th. The utilities provider reported $0.86 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.88 by ($0.02). Chesapeake Utilities had a return on equity of 9.51% and a net margin of 13.61%. The firm had revenue of $166.30 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $194.70 million. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.90 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 22.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Chesapeake Utilities Co. will post 5.39 EPS for the current year.

Chesapeake Utilities Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, October 7th. Investors of record on Monday, September 16th will be issued a $0.64 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 16th. This represents a $2.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.06%. Chesapeake Utilities’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 53.78%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Chesapeake Utilities news, Director Paul L. Maddock, Jr. sold 9,634 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $113.56, for a total transaction of $1,094,037.04. Following the transaction, the director now owns 8,363 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $949,702.28. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 2.68% of the company’s stock.

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.