Chesapeake Utilities Corporation $CPK Shares Sold by Inspire Advisors LLC

Inspire Advisors LLC reduced its holdings in Chesapeake Utilities Corporation (NYSE:CPK) by 74.8% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 1,568 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 4,654 shares during the quarter. Inspire Advisors LLC’s holdings in Chesapeake Utilities were worth $211,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in CPK. Royal Bank of Canada increased its stake in shares of Chesapeake Utilities by 8.0% during the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 28,886 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $3,710,000 after acquiring an additional 2,139 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Chesapeake Utilities by 69.6% in the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 6,283 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $807,000 after purchasing an additional 2,579 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. grew its holdings in Chesapeake Utilities by 6.9% in the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 13,452 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,728,000 after purchasing an additional 870 shares during the period. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC increased its position in Chesapeake Utilities by 3.0% during the first 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 last quarter. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC raised its stake in Chesapeake Utilities by 1,714.7% during the first 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 during the period. 83.11% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Chesapeake Utilities

In other news, COO Jeffery S. Sylvester sold 1,000 shares of Chesapeake Utilities stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $137.08, for a total transaction of $137,080.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer owned 11,916 shares in the company, valued at $1,633,445.28. This trade represents a 7.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Jeffry M. Householder sold 1,908 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, December 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $125.83, for a total transaction of $240,083.64. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 51,916 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,532,590.28. The trade was a 3.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 18,500 shares of company stock valued at $2,355,265 in the last ninety days. 2.68% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. BTIG Research initiated coverage on shares of Chesapeake Utilities in a research note on Tuesday, October 21st. They set a “neutral” rating for the company. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Chesapeake Utilities in a report on Monday, December 29th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Chesapeake Utilities from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, December 13th. Finally, Barclays set a $141.00 price objective on Chesapeake Utilities and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 28th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $141.00.

Chesapeake Utilities Stock Up 2.5%

Shares of NYSE CPK opened at $126.87 on Thursday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $128.71 and a 200 day moving average price of $127.85. The company has a current ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95. Chesapeake Utilities Corporation has a 12-month low of $115.24 and a 12-month high of $140.59. The company has a market cap of $3.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.45 and a beta of 0.80.

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

Chesapeake Utilities Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, January 5th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 15th were issued a $0.685 dividend. This represents a $2.74 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 15th. Chesapeake Utilities’s dividend payout ratio is currently 48.50%.

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.