Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB Purchases Shares of 1,465 Chesapeake Utilities Co. (NYSE:CPK)

Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new position in shares of Chesapeake Utilities Co. (NYSE:CPK) in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 1,465 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $182,000.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. State Street Corp increased its position in Chesapeake Utilities by 0.9% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,222,149 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $152,513,000 after purchasing an additional 11,068 shares in the last quarter. Copeland Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Chesapeake Utilities by 9.5% in the third quarter. Copeland Capital Management LLC now owns 592,471 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $73,567,000 after acquiring an additional 51,164 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Chesapeake Utilities by 1.6% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 516,586 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $64,157,000 after acquiring an additional 8,358 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in shares of Chesapeake Utilities by 4.1% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 489,433 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $51,979,000 after acquiring an additional 19,100 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Boston Trust Walden Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Chesapeake Utilities by 9.5% during the 3rd quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp now owns 300,552 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $37,320,000 after acquiring an additional 26,147 shares in the last quarter. 83.11% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have commented on CPK shares. StockNews.com raised Chesapeake Utilities from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Barclays raised their target price on Chesapeake Utilities from $118.00 to $124.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, October 7th. Finally, Guggenheim upped their price target on Chesapeake Utilities from $118.00 to $129.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, November 22nd. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Chesapeake Utilities currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $123.00.

Chesapeake Utilities Stock Performance

NYSE:CPK opened at $119.11 on Thursday. Chesapeake Utilities Co. has a 1-year low of $98.25 and a 1-year high of $134.20. The stock has a market cap of $2.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.16 and a beta of 0.64. 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 firm has a 50-day moving average of $125.11 and a two-hundred day moving average of $118.42.

Chesapeake Utilities Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 6th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 16th will be paid a dividend of $0.64 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 16th. This represents a $2.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.15%. Chesapeake Utilities’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 51.93%.

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.