Algonquin Power & Utilities (NYSE:AQN) Stock Price Up 5.1% After Dividend Announcement

Shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp. (NYSE:AQN) shot up 5.1% during mid-day trading on Monday following a dividend announcement from the company. The stock traded as high as $5.05 and last traded at $5.05. 1,769,131 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 82% from the average session volume of 9,869,715 shares. The stock had previously closed at $4.80.

The newly announced dividend which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a dividend of $0.065 per share. This represents a $0.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.12%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. Algonquin Power & Utilities’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -14.44%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AQN has been the subject of a number of research reports. National Bankshares reduced their price objective on Algonquin Power & Utilities from $6.75 to $6.25 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $7.00 price target on shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Scotiabank lifted their target price on shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities from $5.25 to $5.50 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price objective on Algonquin Power & Utilities from $6.00 to $5.50 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $6.00.

Algonquin Power & Utilities Stock Up 5.7 %

The business’s 50-day moving average is $4.59 and its two-hundred day moving average is $4.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a current ratio of 0.92. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -3.93 and a beta of 0.71.

Algonquin Power & Utilities (NYSE:AQN) last posted its earnings results on Friday, March 7th. The utilities provider reported $0.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.10 by ($0.04). Algonquin Power & Utilities had a negative net margin of 39.12% and a positive return on equity of 5.22%. The business had revenue of $584.80 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $644.73 million. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp. will post 0.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Algonquin Power & Utilities

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Capstone Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities during the third quarter worth about $58,000. Walleye Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities in the third quarter worth $59,000. SVB Wealth LLC acquired a new position in Algonquin Power & Utilities during the fourth quarter worth $49,000. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in Algonquin Power & Utilities in the third quarter valued at $61,000. Finally, Avantax Advisory Services Inc. acquired a new stake in Algonquin Power & Utilities in the 4th quarter valued at $58,000. 62.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Algonquin Power & Utilities Company Profile

Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp. is an investment holding company, which engages in energy generation and water distribution facilities. It operates through the Regulated Services Group and Renewable Energy Group segments. The Regulated Services Group segment owns and operates a portfolio of electric, natural gas, water distribution, and wastewater collection utility systems and transmission.