John D. Erickson Sells 2,500 Shares of Otter Tail Co. (NASDAQ:OTTR) Stock

Otter Tail Co. (NASDAQ:OTTR) Director John D. Erickson sold 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, November 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.36, for a total value of $193,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 3,300 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $255,288. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link.

Otter Tail Price Performance

Shares of Otter Tail stock traded down $1.61 during trading on Monday, hitting $77.10. The stock had a trading volume of 153,488 shares, compared to its average volume of 260,857. The business has a fifty day moving average of $75.98 and a two-hundred day moving average of $78.72. Otter Tail Co. has a fifty-two week low of $56.13 and a fifty-two week high of $92.74. The firm has a market cap of $3.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.87 and a beta of 0.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 1.80 and a quick ratio of 1.34.

Otter Tail (NASDAQ:OTTR) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, October 30th. The utilities provider reported $2.19 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.64 by $0.55. Otter Tail had a net margin of 20.84% and a return on equity of 21.37%. The company had revenue of $358.06 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $336.40 million. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Otter Tail Co. will post 6.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Otter Tail Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 8th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.438 per share. This represents a $1.75 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.27%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 14th. Otter Tail’s dividend payout ratio is presently 26.40%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, StockNews.com began coverage on shares of Otter Tail in a research note on Thursday, October 5th. They set a “hold” rating on the stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Otter Tail

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of OTTR. US Bancorp DE raised its holdings in Otter Tail by 0.4% during the 1st quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 39,682 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,868,000 after buying an additional 150 shares during the period. Arizona State Retirement System lifted its position in shares of Otter Tail by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 10,688 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $811,000 after acquiring an additional 150 shares in the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company boosted its stake in Otter Tail by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 16,399 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $963,000 after purchasing an additional 163 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can grew its position in 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 purchasing an additional 167 shares in the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. raised its stake in Otter Tail by 0.7% during the 1st quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 27,013 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,952,000 after purchasing an additional 183 shares during the period. 60.50% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Otter Tail

Otter Tail Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, engages in electric utility, manufacturing, and plastic pipe businesses in the United States. The company's 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, Inc markets.