Howland Capital Management LLC Acquires 10,059 Shares of American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK)

Howland Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK) by 5.3% in the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 199,907 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 10,059 shares during the period. American Water Works comprises about 1.3% of Howland Capital Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 25th largest holding. Howland Capital Management LLC’s holdings in American Water Works were worth $29,490,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in AWK. US Bancorp DE raised its holdings in American Water Works by 10.8% in the 1st quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 52,710 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $7,776,000 after purchasing an additional 5,128 shares in the last quarter. Wealthquest Corp purchased a new position in shares of American Water Works during the first quarter valued at about $1,430,000. Natixis Advisors LLC raised its stake in American Water Works by 31.3% in the first quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 96,280 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $14,203,000 after buying an additional 22,935 shares in the last quarter. NorthRock Partners LLC lifted its holdings in American Water Works by 22.9% in the first quarter. NorthRock Partners LLC now owns 2,567 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $379,000 after buying an additional 479 shares during the period. Finally, Vestcor Inc lifted its holdings in American Water Works by 3.3% in the first quarter. Vestcor Inc now owns 7,399 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,092,000 after buying an additional 237 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 86.58% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AWK has been the subject of several research reports. Wall Street Zen lowered American Water Works from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. Barclays reduced their price target on American Water Works from $138.00 to $128.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on American Water Works from $142.00 to $147.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Evercore ISI boosted their target price on shares of American Water Works from $139.00 to $148.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, UBS Group reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $156.00 price target (up from $154.00) on shares of American Water Works in a research note on Friday, July 11th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $141.67.

Insider Buying and Selling at American Water Works

In related news, CAO Melissa K. Wikle sold 2,825 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $143.28, for a total value of $404,766.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 7,572 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,084,916.16. This represents a 27.17% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.11% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

American Water Works Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:AWK opened at $140.24 on Friday. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $141.20 and a 200-day moving average price of $138.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26, a current ratio of 0.49 and a quick ratio of 0.44. The company has a market capitalization of $27.35 billion, a PE ratio of 25.27, a PEG ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 0.69. American Water Works Company, Inc. has a 1-year low of $118.74 and a 1-year high of $155.50.

American Water Works (NYSE:AWK) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 30th. The utilities provider reported $1.48 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.53 by ($0.05). The firm had revenue of $1.28 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.22 billion. American Water Works had a net margin of 21.91% and a return on equity of 10.40%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.42 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that American Water Works Company, Inc. will post 5.71 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Water Works Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 3rd. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 12th will be given a dividend of $0.8275 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 12th. This represents a $3.31 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.4%. American Water Works’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 59.64%.

American Water Works 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.