Otter Tail (NASDAQ:OTTR) Posts Earnings Results

Otter Tail (NASDAQ:OTTR) released its earnings results on Monday. The utilities provider reported $1.66 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.51 by $0.15, Zacks reports. Otter Tail had a return on equity of 15.21% and a net margin of 21.34%.

Otter Tail Price Performance

Shares of OTTR stock traded up $1.74 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $90.16. The company had a trading volume of 500,473 shares, compared to its average volume of 261,885. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a quick ratio of 1.64 and a current ratio of 2.04. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $89.29 and a 200-day moving average of $88.18. The company has a market capitalization of $3.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.52 and a beta of 0.45. Otter Tail has a 12-month low of $74.15 and a 12-month high of $95.00.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Otter Tail

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its stake in Otter Tail by 2.5% during the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 116,479 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $9,361,000 after buying an additional 2,807 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Otter Tail by 26.9% in the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 22,709 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,825,000 after acquiring an additional 4,815 shares during the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Otter Tail by 4.5% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 24,611 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,978,000 after acquiring an additional 1,067 shares during the period. United Services Automobile Association purchased a new position in shares of Otter Tail during the 1st quarter worth $223,000. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC boosted its position in shares of Otter Tail by 190.8% during the 1st quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 54,112 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $4,349,000 after acquiring an additional 35,505 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 61.32% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently commented on OTTR. Weiss Ratings upgraded Otter Tail from a “hold (c)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Siebert Williams Shank lowered Otter Tail from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $86.00 price objective on the stock. in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Zacks Research cut shares of Otter Tail from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. UBS Group reaffirmed a “reduce” rating on shares of Otter Tail in a report on Friday, May 29th. Finally, KeyCorp reiterated a “sector weight” rating on shares of Otter Tail in a research report on Monday, June 1st. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $86.00.

About Otter Tail

Otter Tail Corporation, through its primary subsidiary Otter Tail Power Company, is a regulated electric utility engaged in the generation, transmission and distribution of electricity. The company operates a diversified portfolio of owned and contracted power generation facilities, including coal, natural gas, wind and hydroelectric units, supplemented by long-term power purchase agreements. In addition to utility operations, Otter Tail provides related engineering, construction and maintenance services to support grid reliability and efficiency.

The company’s service territory covers a predominantly rural footprint in the Upper Midwest, including communities in west-central Minnesota, eastern North Dakota, northwest Wisconsin and small portions of South Dakota.