Unitil (NYSE:UTL) Releases Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Estimates By $0.06 EPS

Unitil (NYSE:UTL) posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday. The utilities provider reported $0.03 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.03) by $0.06, Zacks reports. Unitil had a net margin of 9.54% and a return on equity of 9.46%.

Unitil Trading Up 1.2%

UTL stock traded up $0.57 on Monday, reaching $49.32. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 147,179 shares, compared to its average volume of 80,060. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19, a quick ratio of 0.52 and a current ratio of 0.58. The firm has a market cap of $872.27 million, a PE ratio of 16.95 and a beta of 0.65. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $47.24 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $51.08. Unitil has a 12-month low of $44.61 and a 12-month high of $61.51.

Unitil Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 28th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 13th will be issued a $0.45 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 13th. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.6%. Unitil’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 61.86%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Unitil in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, Unitil presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $55.00.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Unitil

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Jane Street Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Unitil by 63.3% during the 1st quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 33,529 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,934,000 after purchasing an additional 13,000 shares during the period. Man Group plc grew its stake in shares of Unitil by 80.4% during the 2nd quarter. Man Group plc now owns 32,257 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,682,000 after purchasing an additional 14,381 shares during the period. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co grew its stake in shares of Unitil by 3.5% during the 2nd quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 25,025 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,305,000 after purchasing an additional 844 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Unitil by 37.0% during the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 12,083 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $697,000 after purchasing an additional 3,263 shares during the period. Finally, MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Unitil by 4.3% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 9,478 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $547,000 after purchasing an additional 391 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.76% of the company’s stock.

About Unitil

Unitil Corporation, a public utility holding company, engages in the distribution of electricity and natural gas. It operates through two segments, Utility Electric Operations, Utility Gas Operations. The company distributes electricity in the southeastern seacoast and state capital regions of New Hampshire, and the greater Fitchburg area of north central Massachusetts; and distributes natural gas in southeastern New Hampshire and portions of southern and central Maine, including the city of Portland and the Lewiston-Auburn area, as well as electricity and natural gas in the greater Fitchburg area of north central Massachusetts.