Foundry Partners LLC Sells 20,270 Shares of Unitil Co. (NYSE:UTL)

Foundry Partners LLC decreased its position in shares of Unitil Co. (NYSE:UTL - Free Report) by 17.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 93,655 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 20,270 shares during the quarter. Foundry Partners LLC owned approximately 0.58% of Unitil worth $5,075,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. ExodusPoint Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of Unitil during the fourth quarter worth about $441,000. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Unitil by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 382,883 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $20,754,000 after buying an additional 1,225 shares in the last quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA boosted its position in shares of Unitil by 32.0% during the fourth quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 5,374 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $291,000 after acquiring an additional 1,304 shares during the last quarter. WINTON GROUP Ltd increased its holdings in Unitil by 7.1% in the 4th quarter. WINTON GROUP Ltd now owns 19,148 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,038,000 after acquiring an additional 1,277 shares during the last quarter. Finally, KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS purchased a new stake in Unitil in the 4th quarter worth $385,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.76% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Guggenheim reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $55.00 target price on shares of Unitil in a report on Wednesday, February 12th.

Unitil Price Performance

UTL traded down $0.34 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $55.63. The company's stock had a trading volume of 13,336 shares, compared to its average volume of 61,123. Unitil Co. has a 12 month low of $47.40 and a 12 month high of $63.52. The company has a current ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25. The business's 50-day moving average price is $56.07 and its 200-day moving average price is $56.62. The stock has a market cap of $903.78 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.05 and a beta of 0.58.

Unitil Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 28th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 13th were paid a dividend of $0.45 per share. This is a boost from Unitil's previous quarterly dividend of $0.43. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.24%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 13th. Unitil's payout ratio is presently 61.43%.

About Unitil

Unitil Corporation, a public utility holding company, engages in the distribution of electricity and natural gas. It operates through two segments, Utility Electric Operations, Utility Gas Operations. The company distributes electricity in the southeastern seacoast and state capital regions of New Hampshire, and the greater Fitchburg area of north central Massachusetts; and distributes natural gas in southeastern New Hampshire and portions of southern and central Maine, including the city of Portland and the Lewiston-Auburn area, as well as electricity and natural gas in the greater Fitchburg area of north central Massachusetts.