Private Wealth Partners LLC Decreases Stock Holdings in American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK)

Private Wealth Partners LLC reduced its position in shares of American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK) by 6.1% in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 15,355 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 1,000 shares during the quarter. Private Wealth Partners LLC’s holdings in American Water Works were worth $2,246,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of AWK. ORG Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of American Water Works in the 2nd quarter worth $30,000. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division purchased a new position in American Water Works in the first quarter worth about $41,000. Hantz Financial Services Inc. purchased a new position in American Water Works in the second quarter worth about $46,000. Salomon & Ludwin LLC raised its position in American Water Works by 260.2% during the first quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 389 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $48,000 after purchasing an additional 281 shares during the period. Finally, E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in American Water Works during the second quarter valued at approximately $50,000. 86.58% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

American Water Works Trading Down 1.5 %

NYSE AWK opened at $136.00 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $26.51 billion, a PE ratio of 26.93, a PEG ratio of 3.26 and a beta of 0.70. American Water Works Company, Inc. has a 12 month low of $113.34 and a 12 month high of $150.68. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $142.73 and its 200-day moving average price is $136.41. The company has a current ratio of 0.64, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24.

American Water Works (NYSE:AWK) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The utilities provider reported $1.42 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.47 by ($0.05). American Water Works had a return on equity of 9.84% and a net margin of 21.77%. The company had revenue of $1.15 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.10 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.44 earnings per share. American Water Works’s revenue was up 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that American Water Works Company, Inc. will post 5.27 earnings per share for the current year.

American Water Works Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 3rd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 12th will be given a dividend of $0.765 per share. This represents a $3.06 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.25%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 12th. American Water Works’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 60.59%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AWK has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Mizuho downgraded American Water Works from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $131.00 to $140.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $164.00 price objective on shares of American Water Works in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. Wolfe Research raised shares of American Water Works to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 18th. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on shares of American Water Works in a research note on Monday, October 7th. They set an “underperform” rating and a $124.00 price target for the company. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered shares of American Water Works from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $127.00 to $138.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, American Water Works has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $140.00.

Insider Transactions at American Water Works

In related news, Director Martha Clark Goss sold 710 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $142.85, for a total value of $101,423.50. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 36,880 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,268,308. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.08% of the company’s stock.

American Water Works Company Profile

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.