Unitil (UTL) Scheduled to Post Earnings on Tuesday

Unitil (NYSE:UTL – Get Rating) will be announcing its earnings results before the market opens on Tuesday, May 3rd. Analysts expect the company to announce earnings of $1.35 per share for the quarter. Investors that wish to register for the company’s conference call can do so using this link.

Unitil (NYSE:UTL – Get Rating) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 1st. The utilities provider reported $0.93 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.90 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $139.80 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $125.00 million. Unitil had a return on equity of 8.54% and a net margin of 7.63%. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.90 EPS. On average, analysts expect Unitil to post $3 EPS for the current fiscal year and $3 EPS for the next fiscal year.

Unitil stock opened at $50.61 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $50.91. The stock has a market cap of $810.57 million, a P/E ratio of 21.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 0.55. The company has a current ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11. Unitil has a 12 month low of $40.53 and a 12 month high of $59.32.

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 25th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 11th were issued a $0.39 dividend. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.08%. This is an increase from Unitil’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 10th. Unitil’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 65.82%.

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. LPL Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Unitil during the 4th quarter valued at about $222,000. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board purchased a new stake in Unitil during the 4th quarter worth approximately $276,000. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Unitil during the 4th quarter worth approximately $386,000. Millennium Management LLC purchased a new stake in Unitil during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $428,000. Finally, UBS Group AG increased its holdings in Unitil by 38.9% during the 3rd quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 11,982 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $513,000 after purchasing an additional 3,358 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.38% of the company’s stock.

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Zacks Investment Research upgraded Unitil from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $57.00 target price on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 20th. Bank of America upgraded Unitil from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and raised their target price for the company from $45.00 to $50.00 in a report on Thursday, February 3rd. They noted that the move was a valuation call. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Unitil from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 19th.

About Unitil (Get Rating)

Unitil Corporation, a public utility holding company, engages in the distribution of electricity and natural gas. It operates through three segments: Utility Electric Operations, Utility Gas Operations, and Non-Regulated. The company distributes electricity in the southeastern seacoast and state capital regions of New Hampshire, and the greater Fitchburg area of north central Massachusetts; and distributes natural gas in southeastern New Hampshire and portions of southern and central Maine, including the city of Portland and the Lewiston-Auburn area, as well as the greater Fitchburg area of north central Massachusetts.

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