Middlesex Water (NASDAQ:MSEX) Trading 4.2% Higher

Middlesex Water (NASDAQ:MSEX)’s share price traded up 4.2% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $64.74 and last traded at $64.45. 40,067 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 73% from the average session volume of 148,136 shares. The stock had previously closed at $61.83.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on shares of Middlesex Water from $56.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 9th. StockNews.com raised shares of Middlesex Water to a “sell” rating in a report on Thursday, May 9th.

Middlesex Water Trading Up 4.5 %

The firm has a market cap of $1.15 billion, a PE ratio of 30.61 and a beta of 0.80. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $54.65 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $53.84. The company has a quick ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83.

Middlesex Water (NASDAQ:MSEX) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, May 8th. The utilities provider reported $0.59 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.45 by $0.14. The business had revenue of $40.52 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $42.00 million. Middlesex Water had a net margin of 21.55% and a return on equity of 8.64%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Middlesex Water will post 2.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Middlesex Water Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 3rd. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 15th were issued a dividend of $0.325 per share. This represents a $1.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.01%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, May 14th. Middlesex Water’s dividend payout ratio is currently 64.36%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Walter G. Reinhard sold 857 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $57.16, for a total transaction of $48,986.12. Following the sale, the director now owns 7,151 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $408,751.16. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 1.86% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Middlesex Water

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System raised its position in Middlesex Water by 2.3% during the second quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 9,000 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $470,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. CWM LLC raised its position in Middlesex Water by 65.1% during the second quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,306 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $68,000 after acquiring an additional 515 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in Middlesex Water by 107.2% during the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,231 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $64,000 after acquiring an additional 637 shares during the last quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC acquired a new position in Middlesex Water during the first quarter worth about $52,000. Finally, Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. acquired a new position in Middlesex Water during the first quarter worth about $1,113,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.52% of the company’s stock.

About Middlesex Water

Middlesex Water Company owns and operates regulated water utility and wastewater systems. It operates in Regulated and Non-Regulated segments. The Regulated segment collects, treats, and distributes water on a retail and wholesale basis to residential, commercial, industrial, and fire protection customers, as well as provides regulated wastewater systems in New Jersey and Delaware.