Victory Capital Management Inc. Acquires 142,664 Shares of American States Water (NYSE:AWR)

Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in American States Water (NYSE:AWR) by 182.8% in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 220,718 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 142,664 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. owned approximately 0.59% of American States Water worth $16,018,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd bought a new stake in shares of American States Water during the 1st quarter valued at $632,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its position in shares of American States Water by 18.1% during the second quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 126,815 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $9,203,000 after buying an additional 19,391 shares during the period. UBS Group AG lifted its holdings in shares of American States Water by 28.7% in the fourth quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 95,385 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $7,671,000 after buying an additional 21,270 shares in the last quarter. Cetera Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of American States Water in the first quarter valued at approximately $533,000. Finally, Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC grew its stake in American States Water by 859.4% during the first quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 23,707 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,713,000 after acquiring an additional 21,236 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 75.24% of the company’s stock.

American States Water Stock Up 1.8 %

Shares of NYSE AWR opened at $83.14 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92. The business has a 50-day moving average of $80.72 and a 200-day moving average of $75.06. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.17, a PEG ratio of 4.26 and a beta of 0.49. 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 released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.85 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.87 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $155.30 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $138.00 million. American States Water had a return on equity of 13.45% and a net margin of 18.85%. American States Water’s quarterly revenue was down 1.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.83 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that American States Water will post 3.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American States Water Increases Dividend

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AWR has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of American States Water from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $80.00 to $87.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. StockNews.com upgraded American States Water from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

About American States Water

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.