Everence Capital Management Inc. Lowers Stock Position in Otter Tail Co. (NASDAQ:OTTR)

Everence Capital Management Inc. lessened its holdings in Otter Tail Co. (NASDAQ:OTTR) by 26.8% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 4,280 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 1,570 shares during the quarter. Everence Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Otter Tail were worth $364,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Arizona State Retirement System boosted its stake in shares of Otter Tail by 1.4% during the 3rd quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 10,688 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $811,000 after acquiring an additional 150 shares in the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company boosted its stake in shares of Otter Tail by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 16,399 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $963,000 after acquiring an additional 163 shares in the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can boosted its stake in shares of Otter Tail by 2.8% during the 1st quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 6,192 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $395,000 after acquiring an additional 167 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Otter Tail by 0.7% during the 1st quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 27,013 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,952,000 after acquiring an additional 183 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Strs Ohio boosted its stake in shares of Otter Tail by 10.0% during the 3rd quarter. Strs Ohio now owns 2,200 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $167,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 61.32% of the company’s stock.

Otter Tail Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:OTTR opened at $82.29 on Friday. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $85.71 and its 200-day simple moving average is $82.32. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.76 and a beta of 0.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 1.84 and a quick ratio of 1.36. Otter Tail Co. has a 12 month low of $68.96 and a 12 month high of $99.49.

Otter Tail (NASDAQ:OTTR) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 13th. The utilities provider reported $1.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.22 by $0.03. Otter Tail had a return on equity of 21.64% and a net margin of 21.81%. The firm had revenue of $314.31 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $300.60 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.00 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Otter Tail Co. will post 5.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Otter Tail Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 8th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 15th were issued a $0.468 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 14th. This is an increase from Otter Tail’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.44. This represents a $1.87 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.27%. Otter Tail’s payout ratio is 26.71%.

About Otter Tail

Otter Tail Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, engages in electric utility, manufacturing, and plastic pipe businesses in the United States. It operates through three segments: Electric, Manufacturing, and Plastics. The Electric segment produces, transmits, distributes, and sells electric energy in Minnesota, North Dakota, and South Dakota; and operates as a participant in the Midcontinent Independent System Operator markets.