CIBC Boosts Algonquin Power & Utilities (NYSE:AQN) Price Target to $7.70

Algonquin Power & Utilities (NYSE:AQN) had its price objective increased by CIBC from $7.50 to $7.70 in a research report sent to investors on Tuesday morning, BayStreet.CA reports. The firm currently has a neutral rating on the utilities provider’s stock.

Several other research firms have also recently issued reports on AQN. National Bankshares increased their price target on shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities from $6.75 to $7.25 and gave the stock a sector perform rating in a report on Tuesday, May 28th. Desjardins increased their target price on shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities from $5.25 to $5.50 and gave the company a hold rating in a report on Thursday, June 6th. TD Securities increased their target price on shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities from $6.00 to $6.50 and gave the company a hold rating in a report on Monday, March 11th. StockNews.com raised shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities to a sell rating in a report on Friday, May 10th. Finally, Scotiabank dropped their target price on shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities from $7.50 to $6.50 and set a sector perform rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of Hold and an average price target of $7.49.

Algonquin Power & Utilities Trading Up 1.5 %

NYSE AQN opened at $6.00 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.60 billion, a P/E ratio of -12.24 and a beta of 0.66. Algonquin Power & Utilities has a 52-week low of $4.90 and a 52-week high of $8.49. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $6.22 and a 200 day moving average price of $6.15. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42.

Algonquin Power & Utilities (NYSE:AQN) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, May 10th. The utilities provider reported $0.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.15 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $737.10 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $813.38 million. Algonquin Power & Utilities had a positive return on equity of 5.39% and a negative net margin of 12.44%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 5.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.17 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Algonquin Power & Utilities will post 0.46 EPS for the current year.

Algonquin Power & Utilities Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 15th. Investors of record on Friday, June 28th will be given a dividend of $0.108 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 28th. This represents a $0.43 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 7.20%. Algonquin Power & Utilities’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -87.76%.

Institutional Trading of Algonquin Power & Utilities

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Pacifica Partners Inc. boosted its position in Algonquin Power & Utilities by 1,975.0% during the fourth quarter. Pacifica Partners Inc. now owns 4,150 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 3,950 shares during the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC boosted its position in Algonquin Power & Utilities by 76.3% during the fourth quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 4,347 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 1,882 shares during the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in Algonquin Power & Utilities during the fourth quarter worth approximately $64,000. Seven Mile Advisory acquired a new position in shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities in the 4th quarter valued at $67,000. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities in the 4th quarter valued at $70,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.28% of the company’s stock.

About Algonquin Power & Utilities

Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp. operates in the power and utility industries in the United States, Canada, and other regions. The company operates in two segments, Regulated Services Group and Renewable Energy Group. The company primarily owns and operates a regulated electric, water distribution and wastewater collection, and natural gas utility systems and transmission operations.