Otter Tail (NASDAQ:OTTR) Cut to “Sell” at StockNews.com

Otter Tail (NASDAQ:OTTR) was downgraded by stock analysts at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note issued on Wednesday.

Otter Tail Stock Performance

Shares of Otter Tail stock traded up $3.97 on Wednesday, reaching $85.52. 658,589 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 233,019. The company has a quick ratio of 1.67, a current ratio of 2.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. Otter Tail has a twelve month low of $73.43 and a twelve month high of $100.84. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.81 and a beta of 0.52. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $78.75 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $85.69.

Otter Tail (NASDAQ:OTTR) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The utilities provider reported $2.03 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.97 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $338.03 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $362.20 million. Otter Tail had a return on equity of 20.28% and a net margin of 22.70%. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.19 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that Otter Tail will post 7.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Otter Tail

In other news, VP Jennifer O. Smestad sold 4,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $88.74, for a total value of $354,960.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 12,300 shares in the company, valued at $1,091,502. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 2.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Otter Tail

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in OTTR. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Otter Tail by 3.9% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,238,510 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $452,607,000 after buying an additional 197,617 shares in the last quarter. Bank & Trust Co acquired a new stake in shares of Otter Tail in the second quarter worth approximately $11,129,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Otter Tail by 3,339.9% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 76,434 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $5,974,000 after acquiring an additional 74,212 shares during the last quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. boosted its stake in shares of Otter Tail by 2,055.2% in the second quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. now owns 67,695 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $5,929,000 after acquiring an additional 64,554 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Otter Tail by 100.1% in the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 71,518 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $5,590,000 after acquiring an additional 35,783 shares during the last quarter. 61.32% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Otter Tail Company 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.