Private Advisor Group LLC Sells 934 Shares of American States Water (NYSE:AWR)

Private Advisor Group LLC lessened its holdings in American States Water (NYSE:AWR) by 3.7% in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 24,429 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 934 shares during the quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC’s holdings in American States Water were worth $1,773,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in AWR. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in American States Water by 2.9% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 4,760,524 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $343,900,000 after buying an additional 132,674 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in shares of American States Water by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 834,318 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $67,097,000 after acquiring an additional 3,597 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its stake in shares of American States Water by 5.6% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 450,788 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $32,714,000 after purchasing an additional 24,042 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of American States Water in the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,984,000. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in American States Water by 3.3% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 368,410 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $29,628,000 after purchasing an additional 11,867 shares during the last quarter. 75.24% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have issued reports on AWR. Wells Fargo & Company raised American States Water from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $80.00 to $87.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. StockNews.com raised American States Water from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday.

Insider Buying and Selling at American States Water

In other news, Director Anne M. Holloway sold 500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.89, for a total value of $40,445.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 38,519 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,115,801.91. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Insiders own 0.82% of the company’s stock.

American States Water Stock Performance

NYSE AWR opened at $83.14 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $3.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.26 and a beta of 0.49. The company has a quick ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 0.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92. The company’s 50 day moving average is $80.72 and its 200-day moving average is $75.06. American States Water has a 12-month low of $66.03 and a 12-month high of $85.71.

American States Water (NYSE:AWR) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.87 by ($0.02). American States Water had a net margin of 18.85% and a return on equity of 13.45%. The business had revenue of $155.30 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $138.00 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.83 EPS. The company’s revenue was down 1.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that American States Water will post 3.03 earnings per share for the current year.

American States Water Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 16th were paid a $0.4655 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 16th. This represents a $1.86 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.24%. This is an increase from American States Water’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.43. American States Water’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 60.78%.

American States Water Company Profile

American States Water Company, through its subsidiaries, provides water and electric services to residential, commercial, industrial, and other customers in the United States. It operates through three segments: Water, Electric, and Contracted Services. The company purchases, produces, distributes, and sells water, as well as distributes electricity.