Motco Makes New Investment in American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK)

Motco acquired a new position in shares of American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK – Get Rating) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 25,825 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $3,936,000.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC grew its stake in American Water Works by 1.0% during the third quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 104,429 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $13,592,000 after buying an additional 1,048 shares during the period. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC boosted its stake in shares of American Water Works by 6.4% in the third quarter. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC now owns 3,426 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $446,000 after purchasing an additional 205 shares during the period. Guggenheim Capital LLC boosted its stake in shares of American Water Works by 44.7% in the third quarter. Guggenheim Capital LLC now owns 46,109 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $6,001,000 after purchasing an additional 14,252 shares during the period. LPL Financial LLC raised its holdings in American Water Works by 7.0% in the fourth quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 205,705 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $31,354,000 after acquiring an additional 13,506 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Richard W. Paul & Associates LLC bought a new position in American Water Works during the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. 83.06% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on AWK. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $180.00 price target on shares of American Water Works in a research report on Tuesday, March 7th. StockNews.com began coverage on shares of American Water Works in a report on Thursday, May 18th. They issued a “hold” rating for the company. Bank of America lifted their target price on shares of American Water Works from $134.00 to $140.00 in a research note on Monday, April 24th. Finally, TheStreet lowered shares of American Water Works from a “b” rating to a “c+” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 15th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, American Water Works presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $156.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Michael Marberry purchased 1,400 shares of American Water Works stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 18th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $142.35 per share, for a total transaction of $199,290.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 3,673 shares in the company, valued at $522,851.55. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.08% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

American Water Works Stock Performance

American Water Works stock traded down $0.15 on Friday, hitting $142.30. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 207,500 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,050,442. American Water Works Company, Inc. has a one year low of $122.77 and a one year high of $162.59. The company has a quick ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 0.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.10. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $146.60 and a 200-day moving average price of $148.92. The firm has a market cap of $27.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.65 and a beta of 0.57.

American Water Works (NYSE:AWK – Get Rating) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 27th. The utilities provider reported $0.91 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.92 by ($0.01). American Water Works had a net margin of 21.40% and a return on equity of 10.22%. The firm had revenue of $938.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $903.84 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.87 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts anticipate that American Water Works Company, Inc. will post 4.77 earnings per share for the current year.

American Water Works Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 1st. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 9th will be given a dividend of $0.7075 per share. This is an increase from American Water Works’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.66. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 8th. This represents a $2.83 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.99%. American Water Works’s dividend payout ratio is 62.20%.

American Water Works Profile

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American Water Works Co, Inc engages in the provision of complementary water and wastewater services. It operates through the following segments: Regulated Businesses, Market-Based Businesses, and Other. The Regulated Businesses segment offers water and wastewater services to customers. The Market-Based Businesses segment includes the military services group, which enters into long-term contracts with the U.S.