HighPoint Advisor Group LLC Makes New Investment in American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK)

HighPoint Advisor Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 2,748 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $363,000.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. MV Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in American Water Works by 110.8% during the 4th quarter. MV Capital Management Inc. now owns 196 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 103 shares during the period. Ables Iannone Moore & Associates Inc. bought a new stake in shares of American Water Works during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. ORG Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of American Water Works by 79.2% in the fourth quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 233 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 103 shares in the last quarter. Tortoise Investment Management LLC boosted its position in shares of American Water Works by 71.9% during the fourth quarter. Tortoise Investment Management LLC now owns 239 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Quarry LP purchased a new position in American Water Works during the fourth quarter valued at $34,000. 86.58% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AWK has been the topic of several research analyst reports. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of American Water Works from $124.00 to $139.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, May 13th. StockNews.com downgraded American Water Works from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 3rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $141.33.

American Water Works Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:AWK opened at $130.25 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $127.40 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $125.71. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26. The stock has a market capitalization of $25.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.42, a PEG ratio of 3.11 and a beta of 0.67. American Water Works Company, Inc. has a 52 week low of $113.34 and a 52 week high of $151.22.

American Water Works (NYSE:AWK) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The utilities provider reported $0.95 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.98 by ($0.03). The company had revenue of $1.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $962.30 million. American Water Works had a return on equity of 9.74% and a net margin of 22.27%. The company’s revenue was up 7.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.91 EPS. On average, analysts expect that American Water Works Company, Inc. will post 5.24 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Water Works Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 3rd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 14th were given a dividend of $0.765 per share. This is a boost from American Water Works’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.71. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 13th. This represents a $3.06 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.35%. American Water Works’s payout ratio is 62.07%.

American Water Works Profile

American Water Works Company, Inc, through its subsidiaries, provides water and wastewater services in the United States. It offers water and wastewater services to approximately 1,700 communities in 14 states serving approximately 3.5 million active customers. The company serves residential customers; commercial customers, including food and beverage providers, commercial property developers and proprietors, and energy suppliers; fire service and private fire customers; industrial customers, such as large-scale manufacturers, mining, and production operations; public authorities comprising government buildings and other public sector facilities, such as schools and universities; and other utilities and community water and wastewater systems.