Chesapeake Utilities Corporation (CPK) To Go Ex-Dividend on December 15th

Chesapeake Utilities Corporation (NYSE:CPK) announced a quarterly dividend on Thursday, November 5th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.7350 per share by the utilities provider on Tuesday, January 5th. This represents a $2.94 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 15th.

Chesapeake Utilities has increased its dividend by an average of 0.1% annually over the last three years and has raised its dividend every year for the last 22 years. Chesapeake Utilities has a payout ratio of 43.6% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities analysts expect Chesapeake Utilities to earn $7.35 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $2.94 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 40.0%.

Chesapeake Utilities Trading Down 1.1%

Shares of NYSE:CPK opened at $140.07 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $3.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.09 and a beta of 0.62. Chesapeake Utilities has a 1 year low of $118.88 and a 1 year high of $145.54. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $131.58 and its 200 day simple moving average is $129.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 0.32 and a quick ratio of 0.28.

Chesapeake Utilities (NYSE:CPK) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 5th. The utilities provider reported $0.89 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.93 by ($0.04). Chesapeake Utilities had a return on equity of 9.34% and a net margin of 15.12%. The company had revenue of $195.80 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $193.31 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.82 EPS. Chesapeake Utilities’s quarterly revenue was up 9.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts anticipate that Chesapeake Utilities will post 6.40 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CPK has been the subject of several recent research reports. Weiss Ratings raised Chesapeake Utilities from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 21st. Mizuho set a $150.00 price objective on shares of Chesapeake Utilities and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, September 11th. Huntington assumed coverage on shares of Chesapeake Utilities in a report on Monday, September 14th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $150.00 price objective on the stock. Barclays set a $134.00 target price on shares of Chesapeake Utilities and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, October 19th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company set a $136.00 price target on shares of Chesapeake Utilities and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 30th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $142.50.

Chesapeake Utilities Company Profile

Chesapeake Utilities Corporation is an energy delivery company that provides natural gas, propane, electricity and related services to residential, commercial, industrial and institutional customers. Its operations include regulated utility businesses as well as unregulated energy and infrastructure activities.

The company distributes natural gas and electricity, transports natural gas through pipeline systems, and supplies propane and other fuels. It also develops and operates energy infrastructure and provides renewable natural gas and other energy solutions through its portfolio of operating subsidiaries.

Founded in 1859, Chesapeake Utilities serves customers primarily in Delaware, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Florida and Ohio.