abrdn plc Raises Stake in American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK)

abrdn plc grew its position in American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK) by 33.4% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 257,459 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 64,489 shares during the quarter. abrdn plc’s holdings in American Water Works were worth $37,195,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of AWK. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of American Water Works by 2.6% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 24,648,326 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $3,012,272,000 after buying an additional 624,977 shares in the last quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc lifted its position in shares of American Water Works by 3.7% in the second quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc now owns 6,902,257 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $890,422,000 after acquiring an additional 247,745 shares in the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC boosted its stake in shares of American Water Works by 6.8% in the third quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 2,245,306 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $328,354,000 after acquiring an additional 143,914 shares during the period. Mirova US LLC grew its position in shares of American Water Works by 2.1% during the second quarter. Mirova US LLC now owns 1,588,109 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $205,120,000 after purchasing an additional 32,764 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wulff Hansen & CO. grew its position in shares of American Water Works by 12,816.0% during the second quarter. Wulff Hansen & CO. now owns 1,464,674 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $189,177,000 after purchasing an additional 1,453,334 shares in the last quarter. 86.58% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at American Water Works

In other American Water Works news, Director Martha Clark Goss sold 710 shares of American Water Works stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $142.85, for a total transaction of $101,423.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 36,880 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,268,308. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.08% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

American Water Works Stock Performance

American Water Works stock opened at $135.69 on Thursday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $142.85 and its 200-day moving average price is $136.10. The company has a quick ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24. The company has a market cap of $26.44 billion, a PE ratio of 27.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.28 and a beta of 0.69. American Water Works Company, Inc. has a twelve month low of $113.34 and a twelve month high of $150.68.

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). The company had revenue of $1.15 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.10 billion. American Water Works had a return on equity of 9.60% and a net margin of 21.93%. The company’s revenue was up 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.44 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that American Water Works Company, Inc. will post 5.27 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Water Works Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 3rd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 12th will be given a dividend of $0.765 per share. This represents a $3.06 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.26%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 12th. American Water Works’s dividend payout ratio is currently 62.32%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently commented on AWK. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $164.00 price target on shares of American Water Works in a report on Thursday, September 19th. Mizuho lowered shares of American Water Works from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $131.00 to $140.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. Bank of America reaffirmed an “underperform” rating and set a $140.00 target price on shares of American Water Works in a research note on Friday, September 20th. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on shares of American Water Works in a research note on Monday, October 7th. They issued an “underperform” rating and a $124.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Wolfe Research upgraded American Water Works to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 18th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $140.00.

American Water Works Company Profile

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.