Black Hills (NYSE:BKH) Trading Up 6.5% – What’s Next?

Black Hills Corporation (NYSE:BKH) shares were up 6.5% during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $72.20 and last traded at $72.1830. Approximately 1,102,578 shares traded hands during trading, an increase of 9% from the average daily volume of 1,008,755 shares. The stock had previously closed at $67.78.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have commented on BKH shares. Wall Street Zen lowered Black Hills from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, April 11th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH began coverage on Black Hills in a report on Wednesday, April 1st. They issued a “buy” rating and a $77.00 target price for the company. Bank of America raised Black Hills from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the company from $76.00 to $78.00 in a report on Thursday. Weiss Ratings lowered Black Hills from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on Black Hills from $84.00 to $91.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 15th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $81.17.

Black Hills Trading Up 2.2%

The company has a market capitalization of $5.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 0.65 and a quick ratio of 0.53. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $73.49 and a 200-day moving average price of $72.26.

Black Hills (NYSE:BKH) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The utilities provider reported $1.79 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.88 by ($0.09). The business had revenue of $780.70 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $769.19 million. Black Hills had a net margin of 12.61% and a return on equity of 7.77%. The business’s revenue was down 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.87 earnings per share. Black Hills has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.250-4.450 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Black Hills Corporation will post 4.34 earnings per share for the current year.

Black Hills Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 15th were given a $0.703 dividend. This represents a $2.81 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 15th. Black Hills’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 73.18%.

Insider Transactions at Black Hills

In other Black Hills news, Director Robert P. Otto sold 4,109 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $74.22, for a total value of $304,969.98. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 10,886 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $807,958.92. This trade represents a 27.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.56% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Black Hills

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of BKH. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its position in Black Hills by 132.3% in the third quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 576 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 328 shares during the last quarter. Advisory Services Network LLC purchased a new stake in Black Hills in the third quarter worth $45,000. Clearstead Advisors LLC increased its position in Black Hills by 884.8% in the third quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 778 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $48,000 after buying an additional 699 shares during the last quarter. First Horizon Corp increased its position in Black Hills by 192.8% in the fourth quarter. First Horizon Corp now owns 773 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $54,000 after buying an additional 509 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Geneos Wealth Management Inc. increased its position in Black Hills by 44.0% in the second quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 1,037 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $58,000 after buying an additional 317 shares during the last quarter. 86.71% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Black Hills

Black Hills Corporation is a diversified energy company based in Rapid City, South Dakota, that provides electricity and natural gas distribution services to residential, commercial and industrial customers. Through its regulated utility subsidiaries—Black Hills Power, Cheyenne Light & Power, and Black Hills Energy—the company delivers reliable energy across Colorado, Kansas, Montana, Nebraska, South Dakota and Wyoming.

In addition to its distribution operations, Black Hills owns and operates a generation portfolio that includes natural gas–fired plants, coal-fired units, hydroelectric facilities and wind projects.