Unitil's (UTL) "Neutral" Rating Reiterated at Guggenheim

Guggenheim restated their neutral rating on shares of Unitil (NYSE:UTL - Free Report) in a report issued on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a $55.00 price target on the utilities provider's stock.

Unitil Price Performance

NYSE UTL traded up $0.34 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $56.70. The company's stock had a trading volume of 80,180 shares, compared to its average volume of 53,335. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $54.36 and its 200-day moving average price is $57.53. The company has a quick ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.27. Unitil has a 1 year low of $47.40 and a 1 year high of $63.52. The company has a market capitalization of $918.02 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.35 and a beta of 0.63.

Unitil Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.45 per share. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.17%. This is a boost from Unitil's previous quarterly dividend of $0.43. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 13th. Unitil's dividend payout ratio is 58.02%.

Institutional Trading of Unitil

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Barclays PLC raised its holdings in shares of Unitil by 139.7% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 32,834 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,989,000 after acquiring an additional 19,134 shares in the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Unitil by 204.2% during the 3rd quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 32,257 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,954,000 after acquiring an additional 21,652 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Unitil by 3.1% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 381,658 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $23,126,000 after acquiring an additional 11,324 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Unitil during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $1,400,000. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC increased its position in shares of Unitil by 109.6% during the 3rd quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 7,316 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $443,000 after purchasing an additional 3,825 shares during the last quarter. 76.76% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.