The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Lowers Position in Unitil Corporation $UTL

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company decreased its position in shares of Unitil Corporation (NYSE:UTL) by 2.9% during the first quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 511,033 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 15,528 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company’s holdings in Unitil were worth $26,696,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its holdings in shares of Unitil by 94.0% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 601,260 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $29,125,000 after purchasing an additional 291,325 shares in the last quarter. Heartland Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in Unitil during the first quarter worth $7,836,000. Renaissance Technologies LLC grew its position in Unitil by 23.5% during the first quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 490,041 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $25,600,000 after buying an additional 93,101 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its position in Unitil by 98.6% during the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 146,984 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $7,120,000 after buying an additional 72,959 shares during the period. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in Unitil by 4.6% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,538,652 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $74,532,000 after buying an additional 67,456 shares during the period. 76.76% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Unitil Price Performance

Unitil stock opened at $53.98 on Friday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $52.57 and its 200 day moving average price is $52.07. Unitil Corporation has a 1 year low of $44.61 and a 1 year high of $57.26. The stock has a market capitalization of $971.12 million, a P/E ratio of 17.08 and a beta of 0.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a current ratio of 0.57.

Unitil (NYSE:UTL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 4th. The utilities provider reported $1.88 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.86 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $216.90 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $179.13 million. Unitil had a net margin of 9.60% and a return on equity of 9.89%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Unitil Corporation will post 3.31 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Unitil Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 17th will be given a $0.475 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 17th. This represents a $1.90 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.5%. Unitil’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 60.13%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have weighed in on UTL shares. Wells Fargo & Company began coverage on shares of Unitil in a report on Monday, May 11th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $56.00 price objective for the company. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Unitil from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, April 13th. Zacks Research upgraded Unitil to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, April 13th. Freedom Capital lowered Unitil from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. Finally, Scotiabank started coverage on Unitil in a report on Friday, April 10th. They issued a “sector perform” rating and a $57.00 price target for the company. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $56.50.

Unitil Company Profile

Unitil Corporation (NYSE: UTL) is a publicly traded energy delivery company that provides regulated electric and natural gas distribution services. The company delivers energy to residential, commercial and industrial customers through a network of distribution systems, offering safe and reliable service across its service areas. Unitil’s operations include system maintenance, emergency response, meter reading and customer support functions, all governed by state regulatory commissions.

Headquartered in Hampton, New Hampshire, Unitil serves communities in New Hampshire, Massachusetts and Maine.