Commonwealth Equity Services LLC Grows Holdings in Chesapeake Utilities Co. (NYSE:CPK)

Posted by Defense World Staff on May 18th, 2023

Commonwealth Equity Services LLC grew its holdings in shares of Chesapeake Utilities Co. (NYSE:CPK – Get Rating) by 2.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 16,531 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 324 shares during the quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC owned approximately 0.09% of Chesapeake Utilities worth $1,953,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in CPK. Assetmark Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Chesapeake Utilities by 32.7% during the 3rd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 796 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $92,000 after acquiring an additional 196 shares during the period. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Chesapeake Utilities during the 2nd quarter worth about $142,000. Folger Nolan Fleming Douglas Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Chesapeake Utilities during the 4th quarter worth about $204,000. Colony Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Chesapeake Utilities in the 2nd quarter worth $207,000. Finally, Inspire Investing LLC purchased a new position in shares of Chesapeake Utilities in the 3rd quarter worth $209,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.23% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Chesapeake Utilities

In other news, SVP Kevin J. Webber sold 2,060 shares of Chesapeake Utilities stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $129.00, for a total transaction of $265,740.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 7,993 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,031,097. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, SVP Kevin J. Webber sold 540 shares of Chesapeake Utilities stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $129.00, for a total value of $69,660.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 7,453 shares in the company, valued at approximately $961,437. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Kevin J. Webber sold 2,060 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $129.00, for a total value of $265,740.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 7,993 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,031,097. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 5,100 shares of company stock valued at $652,950. 2.68% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Chesapeake Utilities Trading Down 0.2 %

NYSE:CPK opened at $123.35 on Thursday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $126.85 and its two-hundred day moving average is $122.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 0.65 and a quick ratio of 0.54. Chesapeake Utilities Co. has a 12 month low of $105.79 and a 12 month high of $138.49. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.19 billion, a PE ratio of 24.62 and a beta of 0.60.

Chesapeake Utilities (NYSE:CPK – Get Rating) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 22nd. The utilities provider reported $1.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.36 by $0.11. The company had revenue of $187.30 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $170.00 million. Chesapeake Utilities had a net margin of 13.20% and a return on equity of 10.57%. Research analysts predict that Chesapeake Utilities Co. will post 5.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Chesapeake Utilities Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 5th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, June 15th will be given a dividend of $0.59 per share. This represents a $2.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.91%. This is a positive change from Chesapeake Utilities’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.54. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, June 14th. Chesapeake Utilities’s payout ratio is presently 42.71%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently weighed in on CPK. Guggenheim increased their target price on Chesapeake Utilities from $112.00 to $116.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 8th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on shares of Chesapeake Utilities from $131.00 to $133.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 14th. Finally, StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of Chesapeake Utilities in a report on Thursday. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock.

Chesapeake Utilities Profile

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Chesapeake Utilities Corp. engages in the distribution and transmission of natural gas, propane and electricity, and the generation of electricity and steam. It operates through the following segments: Regulated Energy and Unregulated Energy. The Regulated Energy segment distributes and transmits gas, natural gas, and electricity.