Otter Tail (NASDAQ:OTTR) Share Price Crosses Above 200-Day Moving Average – Time to Sell?

Otter Tail Corporation (NASDAQ:OTTR)’s stock price crossed above its two hundred day moving average during trading on Thursday. The stock has a two hundred day moving average of $89.42 and traded as high as $90.92. Otter Tail shares last traded at $90.78, with a volume of 144,168 shares trading hands.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Otter Tail from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 13th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $86.00.

Otter Tail Trading Down 0.3%

The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $89.55 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $89.43. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.50 and a beta of 0.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60, a quick ratio of 1.36 and a current ratio of 1.71.

Otter Tail (NASDAQ:OTTR) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The utilities provider reported $1.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.51 by $0.15. The firm had revenue of $334.38 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $326.13 million. Otter Tail had a return on equity of 14.56% and a net margin of 14.83%. The business’s revenue was up .4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.85 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Otter Tail Corporation will post 5.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Otter Tail Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 14th were paid a $0.5775 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 14th. This represents a $2.31 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.6%. Otter Tail’s payout ratio is currently 49.78%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. lifted its position in shares of Otter Tail by 16.6% during the second quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 1,091 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $98,000 after purchasing an additional 155 shares during the last quarter. Evolve Private Wealth LLC raised its holdings in shares of Otter Tail by 3.8% in the 1st quarter. Evolve Private Wealth LLC now owns 4,772 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $419,000 after purchasing an additional 175 shares in the last quarter. Strs Ohio boosted its position in Otter Tail by 33.3% during the 1st quarter. Strs Ohio now owns 800 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $70,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC raised its holdings in Otter Tail by 248.8% in the first quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 286 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 204 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Abel Hall LLC lifted its position in shares of Otter Tail by 9.4% during the third quarter. Abel Hall LLC now owns 2,664 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $235,000 after buying an additional 229 shares during the last quarter. 61.32% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Otter Tail Company Profile

Otter Tail Corporation is a diversified company headquartered in Fergus Falls, Minnesota. Through its electric utility subsidiary, Otter Tail Power Company, it generates, transmits and distributes electricity to residential, commercial, industrial and agricultural customers.

Otter Tail Power Company serves customers across portions of western Minnesota, eastern North Dakota and northeastern South Dakota. Its generation portfolio includes coal, natural gas, wind and other energy resources, supporting the company’s role as a regional provider of electric power and related utility services.

Beyond its utility operations, Otter Tail Corporation owns manufacturing businesses that produce fabricated metal components, plastic products and other specialized goods.