Unitil (NYSE:UTL) Raised to Hold at Wells Fargo & Company

Unitil (NYSE:UTL) was upgraded by equities research analysts at Wells Fargo & Company to a “hold” rating in a report issued on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other brokerages also recently issued reports on UTL. Freedom Capital downgraded Unitil from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Unitil from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, April 13th. Scotiabank began coverage on Unitil in a report on Friday, April 10th. They set a “sector perform” rating and a $57.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Zacks Research raised Unitil to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, April 13th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $56.50.

Unitil Stock Up 0.1%

Shares of NYSE:UTL opened at $50.80 on Monday. Unitil has a 1 year low of $44.61 and a 1 year high of $55.96. The company has a market cap of $913.87 million, a PE ratio of 16.07 and a beta of 0.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 0.57 and a quick ratio of 0.53. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $52.52 and its 200 day moving average is $50.67.

Unitil (NYSE:UTL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 4th. The utilities provider reported $1.88 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.86 by $0.02. Unitil had a return on equity of 9.89% and a net margin of 9.60%.The company had revenue of $216.90 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $179.13 million. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Unitil will post 3.31 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Unitil

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of UTL. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Unitil by 37.0% during the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 12,083 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $697,000 after acquiring an additional 3,263 shares in the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Unitil by 4.3% in the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 9,478 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $547,000 after purchasing an additional 391 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Unitil by 64.6% in the 1st quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 86,678 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $5,000,000 after purchasing an additional 34,017 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC boosted its position in shares of Unitil by 18.6% in the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 67,293 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $3,882,000 after purchasing an additional 10,572 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC boosted its position in shares of Unitil by 63.3% in the 1st quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 33,529 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,934,000 after purchasing an additional 13,000 shares in the last quarter. 76.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Unitil

Unitil Corporation (NYSE: UTL) is a publicly traded energy delivery company that provides regulated electric and natural gas distribution services. The company delivers energy to residential, commercial and industrial customers through a network of distribution systems, offering safe and reliable service across its service areas. Unitil’s operations include system maintenance, emergency response, meter reading and customer support functions, all governed by state regulatory commissions.

Headquartered in Hampton, New Hampshire, Unitil serves communities in New Hampshire, Massachusetts and Maine.