Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. Sells 4,443 Shares of Unitil Co. (NYSE:UTL)

Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. lowered its position in Unitil Co. (NYSE:UTL) by 7.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 56,540 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 4,443 shares during the period. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. owned about 0.35% of Unitil worth $3,064,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in Unitil by 6.1% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 723,587 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $43,835,000 after buying an additional 41,511 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company lifted its stake in Unitil by 3.9% in the 3rd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 511,814 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $31,006,000 after purchasing an additional 19,341 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Unitil by 3.1% in the 3rd 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. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its stake in Unitil by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 203,475 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $11,026,000 after purchasing an additional 2,130 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Foundry Partners LLC lifted its stake in Unitil by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter. Foundry Partners LLC now owns 113,925 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $6,902,000 after purchasing an additional 1,320 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 76.76% of the company’s stock.

Unitil Stock Up 0.6 %

Shares of UTL stock opened at $55.97 on Tuesday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $54.60 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $57.22. The company has a quick ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25. The stock has a market cap of $909.24 million, a P/E ratio of 19.10 and a beta of 0.60. Unitil Co. has a 52 week low of $47.40 and a 52 week 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 given a dividend of $0.45 per share. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.22%. This is a boost from Unitil’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.43. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 13th. Unitil’s dividend payout ratio is currently 61.43%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, Guggenheim reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $55.00 price target on shares of Unitil in a research note 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.