Trexquant Investment LP Makes New $1.27 Million Investment in Chesapeake Utilities Co. (NYSE:CPK)

Trexquant Investment LP bought a new stake in shares of Chesapeake Utilities Co. (NYSE:CPK - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 10,433 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,266,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Jane Street Group LLC boosted its position in shares of Chesapeake Utilities by 11.6% during the third quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 41,032 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $5,095,000 after buying an additional 4,262 shares during the last quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Chesapeake Utilities by 2.4% during the 3rd quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 5,659 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $702,000 after acquiring an additional 130 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its holdings in shares of Chesapeake Utilities by 5.3% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 287,993 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $35,760,000 after acquiring an additional 14,430 shares during the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System grew its stake in shares of Chesapeake Utilities by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 6,516 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $791,000 after acquiring an additional 103 shares during the period. Finally, Van ECK Associates Corp raised its holdings in shares of Chesapeake Utilities by 4.0% during the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 6,323 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $767,000 after purchasing an additional 246 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 83.11% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CPK has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH raised shares of Chesapeake Utilities to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 3rd. StockNews.com raised Chesapeake Utilities from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $122.67.

Chesapeake Utilities Stock Performance

CPK traded up $1.13 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $135.36. The company's stock had a trading volume of 24,652 shares, compared to its average volume of 100,725. Chesapeake Utilities Co. has a one year low of $98.32 and a one year high of $136.24. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $126.39 and its 200-day simple moving average is $124.34. The company has a quick ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 0.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87. The firm has a market cap of $3.11 billion, a PE ratio of 27.46 and a beta of 0.66.

Chesapeake Utilities (NYSE:CPK - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The utilities provider reported $1.63 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.67 by ($0.04). The company had revenue of $215.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $237.84 million. Chesapeake Utilities had a net margin of 14.16% and a return on equity of 9.08%. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.64 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Chesapeake Utilities Co. will post 5.39 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Chesapeake Utilities Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 7th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th were paid a dividend of $0.64 per share. This represents a $2.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.89%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 14th. Chesapeake Utilities's payout ratio is 48.58%.

Chesapeake Utilities Company Profile

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.