Short Interest in American States Water (NYSE:AWR) Decreases By 13.1%

American States Water (NYSE:AWR) was the target of a significant decline in short interest during the month of August. As of August 31st, there was short interest totalling 372,000 shares, a decline of 13.1% from the August 15th total of 428,100 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 208,900 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 1.8 days.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AWR has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of American States Water from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $80.00 to $87.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. StockNews.com raised American States Water from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 12th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Anne M. Holloway sold 500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on 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 document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.82% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On American States Water

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Assetmark Inc. raised its holdings in American States Water by 633.3% in the 4th quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 352 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 304 shares during the period. Principal Securities Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of American States Water in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $34,000. TFO Wealth Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of American States Water by 44,000.0% during the 4th quarter. TFO Wealth Partners LLC now owns 441 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 440 shares during the period. ORG Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of American States Water during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $42,000. Finally, Clarity Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of American States Water during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $76,000. 75.24% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

American States Water Stock Performance

NYSE AWR traded down $0.53 on Wednesday, hitting $83.66. 190,020 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 219,526. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.11 billion, a PE ratio of 27.53, a P/E/G ratio of 4.28 and a beta of 0.49. American States Water has a 1-year low of $66.03 and a 1-year high of $85.71. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $81.18 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $75.29. The company has a current ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92.

American States Water (NYSE:AWR) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.85 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 company had revenue of $155.30 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $138.00 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.83 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 1.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts expect that American States Water will post 3.03 EPS for the current year.

American States Water Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 16th were paid a dividend of $0.4655 per share. This is a positive change from American States Water’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.43. This represents a $1.86 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.23%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 16th. American States Water’s dividend payout ratio is presently 60.78%.

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.