Swiss National Bank Increases Position in Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp. (NYSE:AQN)

Swiss National Bank increased its position in Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp. (NYSE:AQN) by 0.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,441,700 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 8,700 shares during the period. Swiss National Bank’s holdings in Algonquin Power & Utilities were worth $6,396,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AQN. Raymond James Trust N.A. boosted its holdings in shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities by 33.4% in the 3rd quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. now owns 13,343 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $73,000 after acquiring an additional 3,343 shares during the last quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc boosted its holdings in Algonquin Power & Utilities by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 935,130 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $4,141,000 after purchasing an additional 3,656 shares during the last quarter. Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. grew its position in Algonquin Power & Utilities by 12.3% during the 3rd quarter. Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. now owns 47,155 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $258,000 after purchasing an additional 5,158 shares during the period. Redwood Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter. Redwood Investment Management LLC now owns 505,299 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,794,000 after buying an additional 6,176 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Public Sector Pension Investment Board lifted its holdings in shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities by 11.4% in the 3rd quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 72,471 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $396,000 after buying an additional 7,400 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.28% of the company’s stock.

Algonquin Power & Utilities Price Performance

Shares of NYSE AQN opened at $5.13 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a current ratio of 0.92. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $4.70 and a 200 day moving average of $4.83. The firm has a market cap of $3.93 billion, a PE ratio of -3.97 and a beta of 0.71. Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp. has a one year low of $4.19 and a one year high of $6.79.

Algonquin Power & Utilities (NYSE:AQN) last released its earnings results on Friday, March 7th. The utilities provider reported $0.06 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.10 by ($0.04). The company had revenue of $584.80 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $644.73 million. Algonquin Power & Utilities had a positive return on equity of 5.22% and a negative net margin of 39.12%. As a group, research analysts predict that Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp. will post 0.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Algonquin Power & Utilities Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a $0.065 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $0.26 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.07%. Algonquin Power & Utilities’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -14.44%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AQN has been the topic of several analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their target price on Algonquin Power & Utilities from $6.00 to $5.50 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. National Bankshares dropped their price objective on shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities from $6.75 to $6.25 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Scotiabank boosted their target price on shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities from $5.25 to $5.50 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a “neutral” rating and set a $7.00 price target on shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $5.94.

Algonquin Power & Utilities Profile

Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp. is an investment holding company, which engages in energy generation and water distribution facilities. It operates through the Regulated Services Group and Renewable Energy Group segments. The Regulated Services Group segment owns and operates a portfolio of electric, natural gas, water distribution, and wastewater collection utility systems and transmission.