American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK) Receives Consensus Rating of “Hold” from Brokerages

American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK) has been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the ten research firms that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1-year target price among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $139.2222.

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on AWK shares. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of American Water Works from $140.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 2nd. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of American Water Works in a research report on Wednesday, June 24th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of American Water Works from a “strong sell” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Sunday, April 26th. Bank of America reduced their price objective on shares of American Water Works from $147.00 to $134.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 21st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company set a $131.00 price objective on shares of American Water Works in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st.

American Water Works Price Performance

Shares of NYSE AWK opened at $134.88 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $26.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.92, a PEG ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16, a quick ratio of 0.34 and a current ratio of 0.37. American Water Works has a fifty-two week low of $120.57 and a fifty-two week high of $147.87. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $127.03 and its 200 day simple moving average is $130.60.

American Water Works (NYSE:AWK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The utilities provider reported $1.01 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.10 by ($0.09). American Water Works had a return on equity of 10.20% and a net margin of 21.17%.The company had revenue of $1.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.17 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.05 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. American Water Works has set its FY 2026 guidance at 6.020-6.120 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that American Water Works will post 6.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Water Works Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 2nd. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 12th were issued a dividend of $0.895 per share. This represents a $3.58 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.7%. This is an increase from American Water Works’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, May 12th. American Water Works’s dividend payout ratio is 63.48%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On American Water Works

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Salomon & Ludwin LLC boosted its stake in American Water Works by 71.7% in the fourth quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 194 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 81 shares during the last quarter. Reflection Asset Management purchased a new position in American Water Works in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC grew its holdings in American Water Works by 82.6% during the fourth quarter. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC now owns 199 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares during the period. Nemes Rush Group LLC bought a new position in American Water Works during the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Finally, Ascentis Independent Advisors purchased a new stake in American Water Works in the first quarter worth $27,000. 86.58% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

American Water Works Company Profile

American Water Works Company, Inc (NYSE: AWK) is a publicly traded utility company that provides water and wastewater services in the United States. Its core business is the operation, management and maintenance of regulated water and wastewater systems that deliver potable water, collect and treat wastewater, and provide related customer services to residential, commercial and industrial customers as well as municipalities. The company’s operations include water treatment and distribution, wastewater collection and treatment, meter reading and billing, emergency repairs, and long-term infrastructure planning and capital project execution.

In addition to its regulated utility operations, American Water offers complementary nonregulated services and solutions that support system reliability and customer needs.