Wakefield Asset Management LLLP Trims Stake in American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK)

Wakefield Asset Management LLLP cut its position in American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK) by 1.3% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 29,728 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 385 shares during the quarter. American Water Works makes up 1.3% of Wakefield Asset Management LLLP’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 15th biggest holding. Wakefield Asset Management LLLP’s holdings in American Water Works were worth $3,840,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AWK. Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of American Water Works by 5.7% during the fourth quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 120,124 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $15,855,000 after buying an additional 6,486 shares during the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of American Water Works in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $230,000. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of American Water Works in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $253,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of American Water Works by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,045,002 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $137,930,000 after purchasing an additional 24,661 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Principal Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of American Water Works during the fourth quarter worth $670,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.58% of the company’s stock.

American Water Works Price Performance

American Water Works stock opened at $143.94 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $28.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.40 and a beta of 0.69. American Water Works Company, Inc. has a one year low of $113.34 and a one year high of $149.00. The business has a fifty day moving average of $139.87 and a two-hundred day moving average of $129.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a current ratio of 0.64.

American Water Works (NYSE:AWK) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 31st. The utilities provider reported $1.42 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.47 by ($0.05). American Water Works had a net margin of 21.93% and a return on equity of 9.60%. The company had revenue of $1.15 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.10 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.44 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that American Water Works Company, Inc. will post 5.26 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Water Works Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 4th. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 13th were paid a $0.765 dividend. This represents a $3.06 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.13%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, August 13th. American Water Works’s payout ratio is currently 62.07%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other American Water Works news, Director Martha Clark Goss sold 710 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $142.85, for a total value of $101,423.50. Following the sale, the director now owns 36,880 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,268,308. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.08% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AWK has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. 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 stock from $127.00 to $138.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of American Water Works from $124.00 to $139.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note 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 stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, American Water Works presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $141.17.

American Water Works 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.