Black Hills (NYSE:BKH) Shares Gap Up – Should You Buy?

Black Hills Corporation (NYSE:BKH) shares gapped up before the market opened on Wednesday. The stock had previously closed at $70.74, but opened at $74.79. Black Hills shares last traded at $75.9770, with a volume of 587,478 shares.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Freedom Broker initiated coverage on shares of Black Hills in a report on Wednesday, September 30th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $69.00 target price for the company. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Black Hills from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Friday, July 24th. Bank of America increased their price objective on shares of Black Hills from $87.00 to $97.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, September 21st. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price objective on shares of Black Hills from $86.00 to $85.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. Finally, Oppenheimer set a $78.00 target price on shares of Black Hills in a report on Thursday, June 11th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Black Hills has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $81.29.

Black Hills Stock Up 8.9%

The company has a fifty day moving average of $72.08 and a two-hundred day moving average of $72.85. The company has a market cap of $5.87 billion, a PE ratio of 19.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99, a quick ratio of 0.41 and a current ratio of 0.52.

Black Hills (NYSE:BKH) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The utilities provider reported $0.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.41 by $0.13. The company had revenue of $452.80 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $490.89 million. Black Hills had a return on equity of 7.98% and a net margin of 13.01%.Black Hills’s revenue was up 3.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.38 earnings per share. Black Hills has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.250-4.450 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Black Hills Corporation will post 4.34 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Black Hills Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 17th were issued a $0.7030 dividend. This represents a $2.81 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.7%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 17th. Black Hills’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 70.96%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Black Hills

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Clearstead Trust LLC purchased a new stake in Black Hills in the 2nd quarter worth about $34,000. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Black Hills during the second quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Global Retirement Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Black Hills during the second quarter valued at approximately $56,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Black Hills during the first quarter valued at approximately $67,000. Finally, Johnson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Black Hills in the second quarter worth approximately $74,000. 86.71% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Black Hills Company Profile

Black Hills Corporation (NYSE:BKH) is a regulated utility holding company headquartered in Rapid City, South Dakota. Through its operating subsidiaries, the company provides electric and natural gas utility services to residential, commercial, industrial and other customers.

Black Hills owns and operates electric generation, transmission and distribution facilities, as well as natural gas distribution, storage and transportation infrastructure. Its electric utilities serve customers in Colorado, Montana, South Dakota and Wyoming, while its natural gas utilities operate in Arkansas, Colorado, Iowa, Kansas, Nebraska and Wyoming.

The company traces its history to the development of utility services in the Black Hills region and was incorporated as Black Hills Corporation in 1941.