Black Hills (NYSE:BKH) Price Target Cut to $54.00 by Analysts at Scotiabank

Black Hills (NYSE:BKH) had its target price lowered by Scotiabank from $58.00 to $54.00 in a research report sent to investors on Monday morning, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a sector perform rating on the utilities provider’s stock.

Several other equities analysts have also recently weighed in on the company. StockNews.com cut Black Hills from a hold rating to a sell rating in a report on Thursday, March 28th. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price target on Black Hills from $61.00 to $57.00 and set a sector perform rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 9th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and four have assigned a hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $55.00.

Black Hills Price Performance

BKH stock opened at $54.20 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $3.70 billion, a PE ratio of 13.83 and a beta of 0.64. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $52.89 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $52.21. The company has a current ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 0.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15. Black Hills has a 1 year low of $46.43 and a 1 year high of $66.85.

Black Hills (NYSE:BKH) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 8th. The utilities provider reported $1.17 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.06 by $0.11. The company had revenue of $591.70 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $863.67 million. Black Hills had a return on equity of 8.09% and a net margin of 11.25%. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.11 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Black Hills will post 3.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Black Hills Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, June 1st. Investors of record on Friday, May 17th will be issued a dividend of $0.65 per share. This represents a $2.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.80%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 16th. Black Hills’s payout ratio is currently 66.33%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Black Hills

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. lifted its position in Black Hills by 87.3% during the third quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 562 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 262 shares during the last quarter. Rise Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Black Hills during the first quarter worth approximately $31,000. Sunbelt Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in Black Hills during the first quarter worth approximately $33,000. Lindbrook Capital LLC lifted its position in Black Hills by 678.4% during the third quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 685 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 597 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fifth Third Bancorp lifted its position in Black Hills by 56.3% during the first quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 650 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 234 shares during the last quarter. 86.71% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Black Hills

Black Hills Corporation, through its subsidiaries, operates as an electric and natural gas utility company in the United States. The company operates in two segments: Electric Utilities and Gas Utilities. The Electric Utilities segment generates, transmits, and distributes electricity to approximately 222,000 electric utility customers in Colorado, Montana, South Dakota, and Wyoming; and owns and operates 1,394 megawatts of generation capacity and 9,106 miles of electric transmission and distribution lines.