Foster & Motley Inc. Trims Stock Holdings in Otter Tail Co. (NASDAQ:OTTR)

Foster & Motley Inc. reduced its stake in shares of Otter Tail Co. (NASDAQ:OTTR) by 2.4% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 9,618 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 237 shares during the period. Foster & Motley Inc.’s holdings in Otter Tail were worth $752,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in OTTR. Atticus Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Otter Tail during the second quarter valued at about $33,000. Hoese & Co LLP bought a new stake in Otter Tail during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Allworth Financial LP lifted its holdings in Otter Tail by 132.8% in the 3rd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 547 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 312 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in Otter Tail by 46.3% in the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 657 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $58,000 after purchasing an additional 208 shares during the period. Finally, Quarry LP grew its holdings in Otter Tail by 1,811.4% during the 2nd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 669 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $59,000 after buying an additional 634 shares in the last quarter. 61.32% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Otter Tail from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Wednesday.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, VP Jennifer O. Smestad sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $88.74, for a total value of $354,960.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 12,300 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,091,502. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 2.30% of the company’s stock.

Otter Tail Stock Down 3.5 %

OTTR opened at $82.49 on Friday. Otter Tail Co. has a 52 week low of $73.43 and a 52 week high of $100.84. The company has a quick ratio of 1.67, a current ratio of 2.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $78.73 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $85.67. The company has a market capitalization of $3.45 billion, a PE ratio of 11.39 and a beta of 0.52.

Otter Tail (NASDAQ:OTTR) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The utilities provider reported $2.03 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.97 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $338.03 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $362.20 million. Otter Tail had a return on equity of 20.28% and a net margin of 22.70%. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.19 EPS. Analysts forecast that Otter Tail Co. will post 7.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Otter Tail Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be given a dividend of $0.468 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 15th. This represents a $1.87 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.27%. Otter Tail’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 25.83%.

Otter Tail Company Profile

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.