Otter Tail (NASDAQ:OTTR) Stock Price Up 9.6% – Time to Buy?

Otter Tail Co. (NASDAQ:OTTR)’s stock price rose 9.6% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $83.90 and last traded at $84.36. Approximately 96,390 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 57% from the average daily volume of 222,912 shares. The stock had previously closed at $76.99.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently commented on OTTR. StockNews.com raised shares of Otter Tail from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Siebert Williams Shank upgraded shares of Otter Tail from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th.

Otter Tail Trading Up 6.1 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a quick ratio of 1.66 and a current ratio of 2.17. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $76.58 and a 200 day simple moving average of $79.61. The stock has a market cap of $3.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.28 and a beta of 0.57.

Otter Tail Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.525 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $2.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.57%. This is a positive change from Otter Tail’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.47. Otter Tail’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.01%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in OTTR. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Otter Tail by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,275,068 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $389,511,000 after buying an additional 43,186 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its position in Otter Tail by 1.1% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,598,531 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $124,941,000 after acquiring an additional 18,109 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp grew its stake in Otter Tail by 15.1% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 545,618 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $40,288,000 after acquiring an additional 71,601 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in Otter Tail by 5.4% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 536,545 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $39,618,000 after acquiring an additional 27,415 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Millennium Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Otter Tail by 13.5% during the 4th quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 411,281 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $30,369,000 after purchasing an additional 48,888 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 61.32% of the company’s stock.

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.