Unitil Co. (NYSE:UTL) Position Boosted by State Street Corp

State Street Corp raised its stake in Unitil Co. (NYSE:UTL - Free Report) by 6.1% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 723,587 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 41,511 shares during the period. State Street Corp owned 4.47% of Unitil worth $43,835,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its holdings in Unitil by 3.9% in the third quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 511,814 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $31,006,000 after buying an additional 19,341 shares during the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC grew its position in shares of Unitil by 0.9% in the 2nd quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 464,851 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $24,075,000 after acquiring an additional 4,100 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its holdings in shares of Unitil by 1.3% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 442,132 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $22,898,000 after acquiring an additional 5,790 shares during the last quarter. Foundry Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Unitil by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter. Foundry Partners LLC now owns 113,925 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $6,902,000 after acquiring an additional 1,320 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Unitil during the third quarter worth $5,827,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.76% of the company's stock.

Unitil Stock Performance

Unitil stock traded down $0.46 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $53.78. The company's stock had a trading volume of 312,632 shares, compared to its average volume of 58,766. The firm has a market cap of $870.64 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.35 and a beta of 0.62. Unitil Co. has a twelve month low of $45.26 and a twelve month high of $63.52. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $58.51 and a 200-day moving average price of $57.35. The company has a current ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.27.

Unitil Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 29th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 14th were paid a dividend of $0.425 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, November 14th. This represents a $1.70 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.16%. Unitil's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 58.02%.

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.