Chesapeake Utilities (NYSE:CPK) Rating Lowered to “Sell” at Wall Street Zen

Chesapeake Utilities (NYSE:CPK) was downgraded by equities research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Saturday.

A number of other brokerages have also weighed in on CPK. BTIG Research began coverage on shares of Chesapeake Utilities in a research note on Tuesday, October 21st. They issued a “neutral” rating for the company. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Chesapeake Utilities in a report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Barclays set a $141.00 price target on Chesapeake Utilities and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 28th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $141.00.

Chesapeake Utilities Trading Up 1.2%

NYSE:CPK opened at $128.86 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $3.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.81 and a beta of 0.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a current ratio of 0.62. Chesapeake Utilities has a 1 year low of $115.24 and a 1 year high of $140.59. The business has a fifty day moving average of $127.48 and a 200-day moving average of $128.00.

Chesapeake Utilities (NYSE:CPK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.82 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.90 by ($0.08). The company had revenue of $179.60 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $167.30 million. Chesapeake Utilities had a net margin of 14.77% and a return on equity of 9.03%. Chesapeake Utilities’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.80 earnings per share. Chesapeake Utilities has set its FY 2025 guidance at 6.150-6.350 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Chesapeake Utilities will post 5.39 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Chesapeake Utilities

In other news, COO Jeffery S. Sylvester sold 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $137.08, for a total transaction of $137,080.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 11,916 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,633,445.28. The trade was a 7.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Jeffry M. Householder sold 7,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $126.74, for a total value of $950,550.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 56,916 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,213,533.84. This trade represents a 11.64% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 18,500 shares of company stock worth $2,355,265 in the last ninety days. 2.68% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Chesapeake Utilities

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its holdings in shares of Chesapeake Utilities by 8.0% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 28,886 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $3,710,000 after buying an additional 2,139 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Chesapeake Utilities by 69.6% during the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 6,283 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $807,000 after acquiring an additional 2,579 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Chesapeake Utilities by 6.9% in the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 13,452 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,728,000 after acquiring an additional 870 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC boosted its stake in Chesapeake Utilities by 3.0% in the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 79,096 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $10,158,000 after purchasing an additional 2,312 shares during the period. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC grew its position in Chesapeake Utilities by 1,714.7% during the 1st quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 47,328 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $6,078,000 after purchasing an additional 44,720 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.11% of the company’s stock.

About Chesapeake Utilities

Chesapeake Utilities Corporation (NYSE: CPK) is a diversified energy services holding company headquartered in Dover, Delaware. Through its operating subsidiaries, the company engages in natural gas distribution, transmission and storage; propane distribution; wholesale propane supply; and contract compression and natural gas liquids processing. Its core mission is to provide safe, reliable and cost-effective energy solutions to residential, commercial and industrial customers across multiple U.S.