Jennison Associates LLC Buys 21,968 Shares of Chesapeake Utilities Corporation $CPK

Jennison Associates LLC grew its stake in shares of Chesapeake Utilities Corporation (NYSE:CPK) by 4.2% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 540,199 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 21,968 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC’s holdings in Chesapeake Utilities were worth $64,943,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Teacher Retirement System of Texas raised its stake in shares of Chesapeake Utilities by 37.7% during the second quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 6,470 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $778,000 after acquiring an additional 1,772 shares in the last quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Chesapeake Utilities during the second quarter valued at approximately $1,087,000. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Chesapeake Utilities by 9.2% during the second quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 123,796 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $14,883,000 after acquiring an additional 10,422 shares in the last quarter. Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC increased its holdings in Chesapeake Utilities by 2.6% during the second quarter. Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC now owns 5,101 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $613,000 after buying an additional 127 shares during the period. Finally, Tributary Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Chesapeake Utilities by 9.7% during the second quarter. Tributary Capital Management LLC now owns 140,571 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $16,899,000 after buying an additional 12,453 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 83.11% of the company’s stock.

Chesapeake Utilities Price Performance

NYSE CPK opened at $128.59 on Thursday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $129.72 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $126.10. The company has a current ratio of 0.42, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83. Chesapeake Utilities Corporation has a 12-month low of $115.12 and a 12-month high of $140.59. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.92 and a beta of 0.74.

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

Chesapeake Utilities Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, October 6th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 15th were issued a $0.685 dividend. This represents a $2.74 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 15th. Chesapeake Utilities’s payout ratio is currently 48.84%.

Insider Transactions at Chesapeake Utilities

In other Chesapeake Utilities news, CFO Beth W. Cooper sold 5,000 shares of Chesapeake Utilities stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $132.15, for a total value of $660,750.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 90,713 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,987,722.95. The trade was a 5.22% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 2.68% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CPK has been the topic of several research reports. BTIG Research initiated coverage on shares of Chesapeake Utilities in a report on Tuesday, October 21st. They set a “neutral” rating on the stock. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Chesapeake Utilities in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Barclays set a $141.00 price objective on shares of Chesapeake Utilities and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $135.00.

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.