American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK) Given Average Recommendation of “Reduce” by Brokerages

Shares of American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK) have been given an average recommendation of “Reduce” by the eight ratings firms that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12-month price target among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $140.00.

A number of brokerages have recently commented on AWK. Wells Fargo & Company lowered shares of American Water Works from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $127.00 to $138.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Bank of America restated an “underperform” rating and set a $140.00 price target on shares of American Water Works in a research report on Friday, September 20th. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on American Water Works in a report on Monday, October 7th. They issued an “underperform” rating and a $124.00 price objective for the company. Mizuho lowered American Water Works from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $131.00 to $140.00 in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Wolfe Research upgraded American Water Works to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 18th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other American Water Works news, Director Martha Clark Goss sold 710 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $142.85, for a total value of $101,423.50. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 36,880 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,268,308. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.08% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On American Water Works

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of AWK. Miracle Mile Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of American Water Works by 2.9% during the third quarter. Miracle Mile Advisors LLC now owns 2,790 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $408,000 after acquiring an additional 79 shares in the last quarter. Asset Dedication LLC raised its holdings in American Water Works by 1.6% in the 2nd quarter. Asset Dedication LLC now owns 5,415 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $699,000 after purchasing an additional 85 shares in the last quarter. Moody National Bank Trust Division raised its holdings in American Water Works by 2.0% in the 2nd quarter. Moody National Bank Trust Division now owns 4,590 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $593,000 after purchasing an additional 88 shares in the last quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue lifted its position in shares of American Water Works by 0.5% in the 1st quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 21,123 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,581,000 after purchasing an additional 95 shares during the period. Finally, Sugarloaf Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of American Water Works by 25.0% during the 3rd quarter. Sugarloaf Wealth Management LLC now owns 480 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $70,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.58% of the company’s stock.

American Water Works Trading Up 0.8 %

American Water Works stock opened at $141.96 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $27.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.80, a PEG ratio of 3.28 and a beta of 0.69. American Water Works has a fifty-two week low of $113.34 and a fifty-two week high of $150.68. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $143.26 and its 200-day moving average price is $134.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a current ratio of 0.64.

American Water Works (NYSE:AWK) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The utilities provider reported $1.42 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.47 by ($0.05). American Water Works had a net margin of 21.93% and a return on equity of 9.60%. The business had revenue of $1.15 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.10 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.44 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that American Water Works will post 5.27 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Water Works Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 4th. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 13th were issued a dividend of $0.765 per share. This represents a $3.06 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.16%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, August 13th. American Water Works’s dividend payout ratio is presently 62.07%.

About American Water Works

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.