Middlesex Water (NASDAQ:MSEX) Sees Large Volume Increase – Time to Buy?

Shares of Middlesex Water (NASDAQ:MSEX) saw unusually-strong trading volume on Tuesday . Approximately 303,892 shares traded hands during trading, an increase of 130% from the previous session’s volume of 131,930 shares.The stock last traded at $53.50 and had previously closed at $53.66.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently issued reports on MSEX shares. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on shares of Middlesex Water from $58.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Bank of America assumed coverage on shares of Middlesex Water in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. They set an “underperform” rating and a $56.00 price target on the stock.

Middlesex Water Stock Down 0.3 %

The stock has a fifty day moving average of $63.18 and a 200 day moving average of $61.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 0.65 and a quick ratio of 0.57. The firm has a market capitalization of $955.24 million, a P/E ratio of 23.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.82 and a beta of 0.82.

Middlesex Water (NASDAQ:MSEX) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The utilities provider reported $0.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.67 by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $55.10 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $50.00 million. Middlesex Water had a return on equity of 9.58% and a net margin of 22.53%. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.56 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Middlesex Water will post 2.34 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Middlesex Water Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 15th were given a $0.34 dividend. This is a positive change from Middlesex Water’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.33. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 15th. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.54%. Middlesex Water’s payout ratio is currently 59.13%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. State Street Corp lifted its stake in Middlesex Water by 7.0% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 813,455 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $53,070,000 after purchasing an additional 53,098 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Middlesex Water by 0.8% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 434,559 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $28,356,000 after buying an additional 3,430 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its position in shares of Middlesex Water by 12.5% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 219,119 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $11,451,000 after buying an additional 24,400 shares during the last quarter. Thematics Asset Management grew its stake in shares of Middlesex Water by 5.8% during the 3rd quarter. Thematics Asset Management now owns 181,000 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $11,808,000 after acquiring an additional 10,000 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in Middlesex Water by 4.3% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 167,281 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $10,913,000 after acquiring an additional 6,844 shares during the last quarter. 79.52% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Middlesex Water Company Profile

Middlesex Water Company owns and operates regulated water utility and wastewater systems. It operates in Regulated and Non-Regulated segments. The Regulated segment collects, treats, and distributes water on a retail and wholesale basis to residential, commercial, industrial, and fire protection customers, as well as provides regulated wastewater systems in New Jersey and Delaware.