Deutsche Bank AG Buys 4,618 Shares of Unitil Co. (NYSE:UTL)

Deutsche Bank AG increased its stake in Unitil Co. (NYSE:UTL) by 17.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 30,392 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,618 shares during the period. Deutsche Bank AG owned about 0.19% of Unitil worth $1,647,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Unitil by 2.6% in the 4th quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 12,843 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $696,000 after purchasing an additional 325 shares in the last quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund lifted its position in Unitil by 4.4% in the 4th quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund now owns 9,286 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $503,000 after buying an additional 389 shares during the last quarter. Barclays PLC boosted its stake in Unitil by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 33,240 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,802,000 after buying an additional 406 shares in the last quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Unitil by 798.2% during the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 512 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 455 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Anchor Capital Advisors LLC raised its position in Unitil by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Anchor Capital Advisors LLC now owns 31,181 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,690,000 after purchasing an additional 460 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 76.76% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Guggenheim restated a “neutral” rating and set a $55.00 price target on shares of Unitil in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th.

Unitil Stock Up 1.2%

Shares of NYSE:UTL opened at $53.90 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $56.82 and its 200 day moving average is $56.27. The company has a market cap of $875.99 million, a PE ratio of 18.40 and a beta of 0.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 0.83 and a quick ratio of 0.76. Unitil Co. has a 1 year low of $48.94 and a 1 year high of $63.52.

Unitil (NYSE:UTL) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The utilities provider reported $1.74 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.78 by ($0.04). The business had revenue of $207.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $193.03 million. Unitil had a net margin of 9.52% and a return on equity of 9.36%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Unitil Co. will post 3.08 EPS for the current year.

Unitil Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 30th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be given a $0.45 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 15th. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.34%. Unitil’s dividend payout ratio is 61.43%.

Unitil Profile

Unitil Corporation, a public utility holding company, engages in the distribution of electricity and natural gas. It operates through two segments, Utility Electric Operations, Utility Gas Operations. 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 electricity and natural gas in the greater Fitchburg area of north central Massachusetts.