Short Interest in Black Hills Corporation (NYSE:BKH) Expands By 19.8%
by Scott Moore · The Cerbat GemBlack Hills Corporation (NYSE:BKH – Get Free Report) was the recipient of a significant increase in short interest during the month of March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totaling 8,435,649 shares, an increase of 19.8% from the March 15th total of 7,039,385 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 991,751 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 8.5 days. Approximately 11.2% of the shares of the stock are sold short.
Black Hills Price Performance
BKH traded down $0.81 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $76.02. 985,984 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,100,593. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.20, a current ratio of 1.35 and a quick ratio of 1.11. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.78 billion, a PE ratio of 19.10, a P/E/G ratio of 3.06 and a beta of 0.73. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $72.33 and its 200 day moving average price is $70.00. Black Hills has a 1-year low of $55.49 and a 1-year high of $78.69.
Black Hills (NYSE:BKH – Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The utilities provider reported $1.41 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.37 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $635.50 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $809.88 million. Black Hills had a return on equity of 7.91% and a net margin of 12.62%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.37 earnings per share. Black Hills has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.250-4.450 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Black Hills will post 4.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.
Black Hills Increases Dividend
The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, March 1st. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 17th were given a dividend of $0.703 per share. This represents a $2.81 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.7%. This is a positive change from Black Hills’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 17th. Black Hills’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 70.60%.
Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades
Several research firms recently issued reports on BKH. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Black Hills in a research report on Friday, March 27th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on shares of Black Hills from $84.00 to $91.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Wall Street Zen cut Black Hills from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, April 11th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH started coverage on shares of Black Hills in a report on Wednesday, April 1st. They issued a “buy” rating and a $77.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Siebert Williams Shank raised Black Hills from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $79.00 to $82.00 in a research note on Thursday, March 12th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $81.40.
Check Out Our Latest Research Report on Black Hills
Institutional Investors Weigh In On Black Hills
Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Black Hills by 2.6% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 8,990,841 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $553,746,000 after acquiring an additional 225,636 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its stake in shares of Black Hills by 0.8% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 3,841,615 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $215,515,000 after acquiring an additional 31,093 shares during the period. Capital Research Global Investors grew its stake in shares of Black Hills by 38.7% in the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 2,275,922 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $157,995,000 after buying an additional 634,800 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Black Hills by 3.0% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,894,539 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $131,548,000 after buying an additional 55,232 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. grew its stake in shares of Black Hills by 176.9% in the fourth quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. now owns 1,592,000 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $110,517,000 after buying an additional 1,017,000 shares in the last quarter. 86.71% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
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.