American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK) Shares Purchased by Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI

Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI lifted its holdings in shares of American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK) by 10.8% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,219 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 313 shares during the quarter. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI’s holdings in American Water Works were worth $471,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in AWK. ORG Partners LLC acquired a new position in American Water Works in the second quarter valued at $30,000. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. increased its holdings in American Water Works by 100.0% in the first quarter. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. now owns 254 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 127 shares during the last quarter. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division acquired a new position in American Water Works in the first quarter valued at approximately $41,000. Hantz Financial Services Inc. acquired a new position in American Water Works in the second quarter valued at approximately $46,000. Finally, Salomon & Ludwin LLC boosted its stake in American Water Works by 260.2% in the first quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 389 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $48,000 after acquiring an additional 281 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.58% of the company’s stock.

American Water Works Price Performance

Shares of American Water Works stock opened at $142.12 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 0.64, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24. The stock has a market capitalization of $27.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.83, a P/E/G ratio of 3.28 and a beta of 0.69. American Water Works Company, Inc. has a 1-year low of $113.34 and a 1-year high of $150.68. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $143.23 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $135.45.

American Water Works (NYSE:AWK) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 return on equity of 9.60% and a net margin of 21.93%. The firm had revenue of $1.15 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.10 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.44 earnings per share. American Water Works’s quarterly revenue was up 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that American Water Works Company, Inc. will post 5.27 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Water Works Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 4th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 13th were paid a dividend of $0.765 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 13th. This represents a $3.06 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.15%. American Water Works’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 62.07%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AWK has been the subject of several analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on American Water Works in a research report on Monday, October 7th. They set an “underperform” rating and a $124.00 price objective for the company. Wolfe Research raised American Water Works to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 18th. Wells Fargo & Company downgraded shares of American Water Works from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $127.00 to $138.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $164.00 target price on shares of American Water Works in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. Finally, Bank of America restated an “underperform” rating and set a $140.00 price target on shares of American Water Works in a report on Friday, September 20th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, American Water Works presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $140.00.

Insider Activity

In other American Water Works news, Director Martha Clark Goss sold 710 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $142.85, for a total value of $101,423.50. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 36,880 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,268,308. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.08% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.