Chesapeake Utilities Corporation $CPK Shares Purchased by Tufton Capital Management

Tufton Capital Management increased its holdings in shares of Chesapeake Utilities Corporation (NYSE:CPK) by 32.7% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 94,554 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 23,304 shares during the period. Chesapeake Utilities comprises 2.1% of Tufton Capital Management’s holdings, making the stock its 13th largest holding. Tufton Capital Management’s holdings in Chesapeake Utilities were worth $11,796,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in Chesapeake Utilities by 94.7% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 222 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 108 shares during the last quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Chesapeake Utilities by 292.9% during the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 220 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 164 shares during the last quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of Chesapeake Utilities by 66.1% during the third quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 274 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $37,000 after acquiring an additional 109 shares in the last quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. raised its position in shares of Chesapeake Utilities by 77.4% in the 3rd quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 298 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 130 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Johnson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Chesapeake Utilities in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $62,000. 83.11% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Chesapeake Utilities Stock Down 0.1%

Chesapeake Utilities stock opened at $124.31 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.98 billion, a PE ratio of 20.79 and a beta of 0.77. Chesapeake Utilities Corporation has a 12 month low of $115.24 and a 12 month high of $140.59. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $130.18 and a 200-day simple moving average of $130.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 0.45 and a quick ratio of 0.40.

Chesapeake Utilities (NYSE:CPK) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 25th. The utilities provider reported $1.94 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.16 by ($0.22). The business had revenue of $258.90 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $208.59 million. Chesapeake Utilities had a net margin of 15.09% and a return on equity of 9.31%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 20.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.63 EPS. Chesapeake Utilities has set its FY 2028 guidance at 7.750-8.000 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Chesapeake Utilities Corporation will post 6.51 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Chesapeake Utilities Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 6th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 16th were paid a dividend of $0.685 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 16th. This represents a $2.74 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.2%. Chesapeake Utilities’s payout ratio is currently 45.82%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently commented on CPK. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Chesapeake Utilities in a report on Friday, March 27th. Barclays set a $142.00 price target on Chesapeake Utilities and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Chesapeake Utilities from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, March 14th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $142.00.

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.