Fifth Third Bancorp Sells 385 Shares of Chesapeake Utilities Corporation $CPK

Fifth Third Bancorp lessened its stake in Chesapeake Utilities Corporation (NYSE:CPK) by 44.6% during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 479 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 385 shares during the quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp’s holdings in Chesapeake Utilities were worth $58,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Argent Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Chesapeake Utilities by 5.5% during the second quarter. Argent Capital Management LLC now owns 6,632 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $797,000 after purchasing an additional 345 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in Chesapeake Utilities by 70.7% during the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,977 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $238,000 after acquiring an additional 819 shares during the period. U.S. Capital Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Chesapeake Utilities by 20.0% during the second quarter. U.S. Capital Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,600 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $433,000 after acquiring an additional 600 shares during the period. Park Avenue Securities LLC bought a new stake in Chesapeake Utilities during the second quarter worth $227,000. Finally, Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its holdings in Chesapeake Utilities by 46.1% during the second quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 6,296 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $775,000 after acquiring an additional 1,987 shares during the period. 83.11% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Chesapeake Utilities Price Performance

Shares of NYSE CPK opened at $134.39 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.96 and a beta of 0.74. The company has a quick ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 0.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $125.28 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $125.22. Chesapeake Utilities Corporation has a twelve month low of $115.12 and a twelve month high of $136.73.

Chesapeake Utilities (NYSE:CPK) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The utilities provider reported $1.04 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.00 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $192.80 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $182.45 million. Chesapeake Utilities had a return on equity of 9.20% and a net margin of 14.89%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up 15.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.86 EPS. Chesapeake Utilities has set its FY 2025 guidance at 6.150-6.35 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Chesapeake Utilities Corporation will post 5.39 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Chesapeake Utilities Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, October 6th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be given a dividend of $0.685 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 15th. This represents a $2.74 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.0%. Chesapeake Utilities’s dividend payout ratio is 48.84%.

Insider Activity at Chesapeake Utilities

In other news, CFO Beth W. Cooper sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $132.15, for a total transaction of $660,750.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 90,713 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,987,722.95. This represents a 5.22% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 2.68% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Chesapeake Utilities from $124.00 to $120.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Chesapeake Utilities currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $124.50.

About Chesapeake Utilities

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.