Raymond James Financial Inc. Makes New Investment in Black Hills Co. (NYSE:BKH)

Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in Black Hills Co. (NYSE:BKH - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 143,772 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $8,413,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. owned 0.20% of Black Hills at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Natixis Advisors LLC grew its position in Black Hills by 14.1% in the third quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 20,034 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,224,000 after acquiring an additional 2,475 shares in the last quarter. Swiss National Bank boosted its stake in shares of Black Hills by 0.4% in the third quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 134,679 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $8,232,000 after purchasing an additional 500 shares during the period. Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC acquired a new stake in Black Hills during the 3rd quarter valued at $1,463,000. Advisors Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in Black Hills by 5.7% during the 3rd quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 20,747 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,268,000 after buying an additional 1,126 shares during the period. Finally, Intech Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in Black Hills by 176.5% in the 3rd quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 13,189 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $806,000 after buying an additional 8,419 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.71% of the company's stock.

Black Hills Stock Up 1.0 %

Shares of BKH stock traded up $0.61 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $59.43. 331,022 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 419,811. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a current ratio of 0.97. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $59.60 and its 200 day simple moving average is $60.09. The company has a market capitalization of $4.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.16, a P/E/G ratio of 2.75 and a beta of 0.68. Black Hills Co. has a fifty-two week low of $50.73 and a fifty-two week high of $65.59.

Black Hills (NYSE:BKH - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.37 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.20 by $0.17. Black Hills had a net margin of 12.84% and a return on equity of 7.82%. Research analysts predict that Black Hills Co. will post 4.12 earnings per share for the current year.

Black Hills Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, March 1st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th were issued a dividend of $0.676 per share. This represents a $2.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.55%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 18th. This is an increase from Black Hills's previous quarterly dividend of $0.65. Black Hills's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 68.88%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Scotiabank lowered their target price on Black Hills from $67.00 to $66.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 7th.

Black Hills Company Profile

Black Hills Corporation, through its subsidiaries, operates as an electric and natural gas utility company in the United States. The company operates in two segments: Electric Utilities and Gas Utilities. The Electric Utilities segment generates, transmits, and distributes electricity to approximately 222,000 electric utility customers in Colorado, Montana, South Dakota, and Wyoming; and owns and operates 1,394 megawatts of generation capacity and 9,106 miles of electric transmission and distribution lines.