MML Investors Services LLC Takes Position in American States Water (NYSE:AWR)

MML Investors Services LLC purchased a new stake in shares of American States Water (NYSE:AWR) in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm purchased 2,476 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $206,000.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of AWR. Raymond James & Associates grew its holdings in shares of American States Water by 3.4% during the second quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 42,358 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $3,074,000 after buying an additional 1,393 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its stake in American States Water by 5.6% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 450,788 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $32,714,000 after acquiring an additional 24,042 shares in the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC grew its position in American States Water by 31.7% in the 2nd quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 31,224 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,266,000 after acquiring an additional 7,517 shares in the last quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. increased its stake in American States Water by 21.8% during the 2nd quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. now owns 122,170 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $8,866,000 after buying an additional 21,868 shares during the period. Finally, Commonwealth Equity Services LLC increased its position in shares of American States Water by 2.4% during the second quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 47,387 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $3,439,000 after acquiring an additional 1,100 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.24% of the company’s stock.

American States Water Stock Performance

NYSE:AWR opened at $78.63 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $2.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.77 and a beta of 0.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 0.69 and a quick ratio of 0.64. American States Water has a 1-year low of $66.03 and a 1-year high of $87.50. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $83.31 and its 200 day moving average price is $80.84.

American States Water (NYSE:AWR) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.95 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.98 by ($0.03). American States Water had a net margin of 19.26% and a return on equity of 13.53%. The business had revenue of $161.78 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $161.00 million. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.85 EPS. American States Water’s revenue was up 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts expect that American States Water will post 3.02 EPS for the current year.

American States Water Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 15th were issued a dividend of $0.4655 per share. This represents a $1.86 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.37%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 15th. American States Water’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 62.63%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AWR has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. StockNews.com downgraded shares of American States Water from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 27th. Bank of America started coverage on American States Water in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $85.00 target price for the company.

American States Water Company Profile

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.