Tidal Investments LLC Grows Stake in American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK)

Tidal Investments LLC increased its holdings in shares of American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK) by 16.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 28,396 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,091 shares during the quarter. Tidal Investments LLC’s holdings in American Water Works were worth $3,535,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Crews Bank & Trust purchased a new stake in shares of American Water Works during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Providence First Trust Co purchased a new position in American Water Works during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC bought a new stake in American Water Works in the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in American Water Works by 54.2% in the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 293 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 103 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Banque Transatlantique SA bought a new stake in American Water Works in the 4th quarter worth approximately $46,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.58% of the company’s stock.

American Water Works Price Performance

Shares of American Water Works stock opened at $143.43 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $27.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.80 and a beta of 0.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a quick ratio of 0.35 and a current ratio of 0.39. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $144.32 and a 200-day moving average price of $135.14. American Water Works Company, Inc. has a one year low of $118.74 and a one year high of $155.50.

American Water Works (NYSE:AWK) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The utilities provider reported $1.05 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.06 by ($0.01). American Water Works had a return on equity of 10.29% and a net margin of 22.44%. The company had revenue of $1.14 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.09 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.95 EPS. American Water Works’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts expect that American Water Works Company, Inc. will post 5.71 EPS for the current year.

American Water Works Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 3rd. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 13th will be paid a dividend of $0.8275 per share. This is a positive change from American Water Works’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.77. This represents a $3.31 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.31%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 13th. American Water Works’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 60.29%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AWK has been the topic of a number of research reports. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on American Water Works from $139.00 to $148.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on American Water Works from $142.00 to $147.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Barclays initiated coverage on American Water Works in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. They issued an “underweight” rating and a $138.00 price objective on the stock. StockNews.com downgraded American Water Works from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on American Water Works from $147.00 to $128.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, American Water Works currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $143.22.

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.