American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK) Shares Sold by Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd

Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd reduced its stake in shares of American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK) by 9.0% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 80,620 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 7,957 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd’s holdings in American Water Works were worth $10,413,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in AWK. Ables Iannone Moore & Associates Inc. acquired a new stake in American Water Works during the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. ORG Partners LLC purchased a new stake in American Water Works in the second quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. boosted its position in American Water Works by 100.0% in the first quarter. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. now owns 254 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 127 shares during the last quarter. Tortoise Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in American Water Works by 71.9% in the 4th quarter. Tortoise Investment Management LLC now owns 239 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the period. Finally, Quarry LP purchased a new position in American Water Works during the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. 86.58% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

American Water Works Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE AWK opened at $143.12 on Friday. American Water Works Company, Inc. has a 1 year low of $113.34 and a 1 year high of $149.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a current ratio of 0.64. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $138.23 and its 200 day moving average price is $128.81. The company has a market capitalization of $27.88 billion, a PE ratio of 29.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.44 and a beta of 0.67.

American Water Works (NYSE:AWK) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The utilities provider reported $1.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.47 by ($0.05). The firm had revenue of $1.15 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.10 billion. American Water Works had a return on equity of 9.60% and a net margin of 21.93%. The company’s revenue was up 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.44 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that American Water Works Company, Inc. will post 5.25 earnings per share for the current year.

American Water Works Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 4th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 13th will be paid a dividend of $0.765 per share. This represents a $3.06 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.14%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 13th. American Water Works’s payout ratio is 62.07%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently commented on AWK. Wells Fargo & Company downgraded shares of American Water Works from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $127.00 to $138.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. UBS Group increased their price target on American Water Works from $124.00 to $139.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, May 13th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, American Water Works presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $141.17.

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.