Mariner LLC Increases Holdings in Otter Tail Co. (NASDAQ:OTTR)

Mariner LLC lifted its stake in Otter Tail Co. (NASDAQ:OTTR - Free Report) by 370.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 27,851 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 21,932 shares during the quarter. Mariner LLC owned 0.07% of Otter Tail worth $2,057,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of OTTR. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Otter Tail by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,275,068 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $389,511,000 after acquiring an additional 43,186 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in Otter Tail by 5.4% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 536,545 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $39,618,000 after buying an additional 27,415 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Otter Tail by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 405,146 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $29,916,000 after buying an additional 8,993 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Otter Tail by 49.6% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 291,344 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $21,513,000 after buying an additional 96,573 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its position in Otter Tail by 4.2% during the fourth quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 225,987 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $16,687,000 after acquiring an additional 9,088 shares during the last quarter. 61.32% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Otter Tail Stock Performance

NASDAQ:OTTR traded down $1.24 on Friday, hitting $77.89. The stock had a trading volume of 175,993 shares, compared to its average volume of 237,561. Otter Tail Co. has a 52-week low of $71.66 and a 52-week high of $100.84. The stock has a market cap of $3.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.86 and a beta of 0.49. The company has a quick ratio of 1.66, a current ratio of 2.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $79.99 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $78.70.

Otter Tail (NASDAQ:OTTR - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 17th. The utilities provider reported $1.30 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.26 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $303.11 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $314.75 million. Otter Tail had a net margin of 22.67% and a return on equity of 18.96%. As a group, research analysts predict that Otter Tail Co. will post 5.88 earnings per share for the current year.

Otter Tail Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th were paid a dividend of $0.525 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. This is an increase from Otter Tail's previous quarterly dividend of $0.47. This represents a $2.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.70%. Otter Tail's payout ratio is 29.29%.

About Otter Tail

Otter Tail Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, engages in electric utility, manufacturing, and plastic pipe businesses in the United States. It operates through three segments: Electric, Manufacturing, and Plastics. The Electric segment produces, transmits, distributes, and sells electric energy in Minnesota, North Dakota, and South Dakota; and operates as a participant in the Midcontinent Independent System Operator markets.