H2O America (NASDAQ:HTO) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Hold” by Analysts

H2O America (NASDAQ:HTO) has been given an average rating of “Hold” by the four brokerages that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and one has assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price target among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $56.50.

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on HTO. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of H2O America in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of H2O America from $60.00 to $58.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Finally, BTIG Research began coverage on shares of H2O America in a research report on Tuesday, October 21st. They issued a “neutral” rating for the company.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On H2O America

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. CWM LLC grew its position in H2O America by 240.2% during the 1st quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,395 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $76,000 after purchasing an additional 985 shares during the period. US Bancorp DE acquired a new stake in H2O America during the third quarter worth about $62,000. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV purchased a new position in H2O America during the third quarter valued at approximately $100,000. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd acquired a new position in H2O America in the first quarter valued at approximately $202,000. Finally, Russell Investments Group Ltd. purchased a new stake in H2O America in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $210,000. 84.29% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

H2O America Stock Down 0.2%

HTO opened at $47.36 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.03, a PEG ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 0.54. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $48.42 and a 200-day moving average price of $50.81. H2O America has a twelve month low of $44.91 and a twelve month high of $57.17. The company has a quick ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 0.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15.

H2O America (NASDAQ:HTO) last issued its earnings results on Monday, October 27th. The utilities provider reported $1.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.17 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $240.55 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $232.27 million. H2O America had a net margin of 13.59% and a return on equity of 7.87%. Equities research analysts forecast that H2O America will post 2.75 earnings per share for the current year.

H2O America Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 1st. Investors of record on Monday, November 10th will be issued a $0.42 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 10th. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.5%. H2O America’s dividend payout ratio is currently 53.33%.

H2O America Company Profile

SJW Group, through its subsidiaries, provides water utility and other related services in the United States. It operates in Water Utility Services and Real Estate Services segments. The company engages in the production, purchase, storage, purification, distribution, wholesale, and retail sale of water and wastewater services; and supplies groundwater from wells, surface water from watershed run-off and diversion, reclaimed water, and imported water purchased from the Santa Clara Valley Water District.