Chesapeake Utilities (NYSE:CPK) Downgraded by StockNews.com to “Sell”

Chesapeake Utilities (NYSE:CPK) was downgraded by investment analysts at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report released on Tuesday.

A number of other analysts have also commented on CPK. Barclays boosted their price target on Chesapeake Utilities from $118.00 to $124.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, October 7th. Guggenheim upped their price target on Chesapeake Utilities from $118.00 to $129.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $123.00.

Chesapeake Utilities Price Performance

NYSE CPK traded down $1.19 on Tuesday, hitting $122.87. 51,646 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 76,885. Chesapeake Utilities has a 1-year low of $98.25 and a 1-year high of $134.20. The company has a market cap of $2.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.92 and a beta of 0.65. The company has a current ratio of 0.38, a quick ratio of 0.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $124.27 and a two-hundred day moving average of $121.30.

Chesapeake Utilities (NYSE:CPK) last released its earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The utilities provider reported $0.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.69 by $0.11. The company had revenue of $160.14 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $164.80 million. Chesapeake Utilities had a net margin of 14.16% and a return on equity of 9.08%. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.69 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Chesapeake Utilities will post 5.39 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Chesapeake Utilities

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Assetmark Inc. increased its stake in Chesapeake Utilities by 19.2% during the 3rd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 634 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $79,000 after acquiring an additional 102 shares during the period. Caprock Group LLC raised its position in Chesapeake Utilities by 3.4% during the fourth quarter. Caprock Group LLC now owns 3,313 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $404,000 after purchasing an additional 110 shares in the last quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Chesapeake Utilities by 2.4% in the 3rd quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 5,659 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $702,000 after purchasing an additional 130 shares in the last quarter. Creative Planning increased its stake in shares of Chesapeake Utilities by 1.8% in the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 7,706 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $957,000 after purchasing an additional 135 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State of Alaska Department of Revenue raised its stake in Chesapeake Utilities by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 12,947 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,571,000 after acquiring an additional 135 shares in the last quarter. 83.11% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Chesapeake Utilities

Chesapeake Utilities Corporation operates as an energy delivery company. The company operates through two segments, Regulated Energy and Unregulated Energy. The Regulated Energy segment natural gas distribution operations in central and southern Delaware, Maryland's eastern shore, and Florida; regulated natural gas transmission in the Delmarva Peninsula, Ohio, and Florida; and regulated electric distribution in northeast and northwest Florida.