Aristotle Capital Boston LLC Sells 26,286 Shares of Unitil Corporation $UTL

Aristotle Capital Boston LLC lowered its position in Unitil Corporation (NYSE:UTL) by 8.7% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 274,303 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 26,286 shares during the quarter. Aristotle Capital Boston LLC’s holdings in Unitil were worth $13,287,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of UTL. International Assets Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Unitil in the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Jones Financial Companies Lllp raised its position in Unitil by 100.0% in the 3rd quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 568 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 284 shares during the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC bought a new position in Unitil in the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd bought a new position in Unitil in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $29,000. Finally, Quarry LP bought a new position in Unitil in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $32,000. Institutional investors own 76.76% of the company’s stock.

Unitil Price Performance

UTL opened at $51.14 on Thursday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $51.70 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $51.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a current ratio of 0.57. Unitil Corporation has a 52 week low of $44.61 and a 52 week high of $55.08. The firm has a market capitalization of $920.06 million, a PE ratio of 16.18 and a beta of 0.32.

Unitil (NYSE:UTL) last released its earnings results on Monday, May 4th. The utilities provider reported $1.88 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.86 by $0.02. Unitil had a net margin of 9.60% and a return on equity of 9.89%. The firm had revenue of $216.90 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $179.13 million. As a group, analysts anticipate that Unitil Corporation will post 3.31 earnings per share for the current year.

Unitil Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 29th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 14th were issued a dividend of $0.475 per share. This represents a $1.90 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 14th. Unitil’s payout ratio is currently 60.13%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently weighed in on UTL shares. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Unitil from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, April 13th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Unitil to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, April 13th. Scotiabank started coverage on shares of Unitil in a research report on Friday, April 10th. They issued a “sector perform” rating and a $57.00 price objective for the company. Wells Fargo & Company started coverage on shares of Unitil in a research report on Monday, May 11th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $56.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Freedom Capital cut shares of Unitil from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 5th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $56.50.

Unitil Company Profile

Unitil Corporation (NYSE: UTL) is a publicly traded energy delivery company that provides regulated electric and natural gas distribution services. The company delivers energy to residential, commercial and industrial customers through a network of distribution systems, offering safe and reliable service across its service areas. Unitil’s operations include system maintenance, emergency response, meter reading and customer support functions, all governed by state regulatory commissions.

Headquartered in Hampton, New Hampshire, Unitil serves communities in New Hampshire, Massachusetts and Maine.