Sterling Capital Management LLC Has $333,000 Stock Position in Black Hills Corporation $BKH

Sterling Capital Management LLC lessened its stake in shares of Black Hills Corporation (NYSE:BKH) by 68.7% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 4,802 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 10,521 shares during the quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Black Hills were worth $333,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in BKH. Advisory Services Network LLC acquired a new position in Black Hills during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $45,000. First Horizon Corp raised its position in shares of Black Hills by 192.8% during the fourth quarter. First Horizon Corp now owns 773 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $54,000 after purchasing an additional 509 shares during the period. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Black Hills by 44.0% in the 2nd quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 1,037 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $58,000 after purchasing an additional 317 shares in the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Black Hills by 47.6% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 850 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $59,000 after purchasing an additional 274 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Parallel Advisors LLC grew its position in Black Hills by 42.6% in the 3rd quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 1,179 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $73,000 after purchasing an additional 352 shares during the period. 86.71% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have commented on the stock. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on shares of Black Hills from $84.00 to $91.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 15th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH started coverage on shares of Black Hills in a research note on Wednesday, April 1st. They issued a “buy” rating and a $77.00 price objective on the stock. Oppenheimer set a $78.00 target price on shares of Black Hills in a research report on Thursday, June 11th. Bank of America raised shares of Black Hills from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $76.00 to $78.00 in a research report on Thursday, June 11th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Black Hills from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 24th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, Black Hills currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $81.17.

Insider Transactions at Black Hills

In other Black Hills news, Director Robert P. Otto sold 4,109 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $74.22, for a total value of $304,969.98. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 10,886 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $807,958.92. This represents a 27.40% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.56% of the company’s stock.

Black Hills Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:BKH opened at $73.64 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $73.56 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $72.49. Black Hills Corporation has a 1-year low of $55.79 and a 1-year high of $78.69. The stock has a market cap of $5.61 billion, a PE ratio of 19.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.92 and a beta of 0.71.

Black Hills (NYSE:BKH) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The utilities provider reported $1.79 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.88 by ($0.09). Black Hills had a return on equity of 7.77% and a net margin of 12.61%.The firm had revenue of $780.70 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $769.19 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.87 EPS. The business’s revenue was down 3.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Black Hills has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.250-4.450 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Black Hills Corporation will post 4.34 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Black Hills Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 1st. Investors of record on Friday, May 15th were issued a dividend of $0.703 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 15th. This represents a $2.81 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.8%. Black Hills’s payout ratio is 73.18%.

About Black Hills

Black Hills Corporation is a diversified energy company based in Rapid City, South Dakota, that provides electricity and natural gas distribution services to residential, commercial and industrial customers. Through its regulated utility subsidiaries—Black Hills Power, Cheyenne Light & Power, and Black Hills Energy—the company delivers reliable energy across Colorado, Kansas, Montana, Nebraska, South Dakota and Wyoming.

In addition to its distribution operations, Black Hills owns and operates a generation portfolio that includes natural gas–fired plants, coal-fired units, hydroelectric facilities and wind projects.