Raymond James Financial Inc. Buys Shares of 38,430 Unitil Co. (NYSE:UTL)

Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Unitil Co. (NYSE:UTL - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 38,430 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $2,082,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. owned 0.24% of Unitil as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in UTL. Barclays PLC boosted its stake in shares of Unitil by 139.7% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 32,834 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,989,000 after purchasing an additional 19,134 shares in the last quarter. US Bancorp DE raised its stake in shares of Unitil by 8,333.3% in the fourth quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 2,024 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $110,000 after acquiring an additional 2,000 shares during the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC increased its holdings in Unitil by 204.2% during the 3rd quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 32,257 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,954,000 after purchasing an additional 21,652 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Unitil by 3.1% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 381,658 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $23,126,000 after purchasing an additional 11,324 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP acquired a new position in Unitil during the 3rd quarter worth about $1,400,000. Institutional investors own 76.76% of the company's stock.

Unitil Trading Up 0.3 %

Unitil stock traded up $0.16 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $58.39. The stock had a trading volume of 71,647 shares, compared to its average volume of 60,748. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $55.71 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $56.86. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $948.59 million, a PE ratio of 19.93 and a beta of 0.60. Unitil Co. has a 12 month low of $47.40 and a 12 month high of $63.52.

Unitil Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 28th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 13th were paid a $0.45 dividend. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.08%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 13th. This is a positive change from Unitil's previous quarterly dividend of $0.43. Unitil's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 61.43%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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

Unitil Profile

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.