Black Hills (NYSE:BKH) Cut to “Sell” at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Black Hills (NYSE:BKH) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research report sent to investors on Saturday morning.

A number of other brokerages also recently issued reports on BKH. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Black Hills in a research note on Monday, December 29th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on shares of Black Hills from $82.00 to $84.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, February 9th. Finally, Scotiabank upgraded shares of Black Hills from a “sector perform” rating to a “sector outperform” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $66.00 to $81.00 in a research report on Friday, November 7th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $76.33.

Black Hills Trading Up 1.1%

Shares of BKH stock opened at $74.03 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.35, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.23. The stock has a market cap of $5.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.75. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $71.49 and a 200 day simple moving average of $66.29. Black Hills has a 1 year low of $54.92 and a 1 year high of $75.87.

Black Hills (NYSE:BKH) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 4th. The utilities provider reported $1.41 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.37 by $0.04. Black Hills had a return on equity of 7.95% and a net margin of 12.62%.The business’s quarterly revenue was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.37 EPS. Black Hills has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.250-4.450 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Black Hills will post 4.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Black Hills Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, March 1st. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 17th will be paid a $0.703 dividend. This represents a $2.81 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 17th. This is a positive change from Black Hills’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. Black Hills’s payout ratio is currently 67.84%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Spire Wealth Management lifted its stake in shares of Black Hills by 4,115.4% in the second quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 548 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 535 shares during the period. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. bought a new position in Black Hills during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $31,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Black Hills by 132.3% in the 3rd quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 576 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 328 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Black Hills by 37.8% in the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 641 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 176 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Advisory Services Network LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Black Hills during the third quarter worth $45,000. 86.71% of the stock is currently owned by 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.