American States Water (NYSE:AWR) Director Purchases $68,898.57 in Stock

American States Water (NYSE:AWR - Get Free Report) Director Thomas A. Eichelberger acquired 897 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 6th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $76.81 per share, for a total transaction of $68,898.57. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 8,467 shares of the company's stock, valued at $650,350.27. This represents a 11.85% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink.

American States Water Price Performance

AWR traded up $0.81 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $77.48. 226,223 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 216,369. American States Water has a 1-year low of $69.46 and a 1-year high of $87.50. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.98 billion, a PE ratio of 24.44, a P/E/G ratio of 12.92 and a beta of 0.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.76. The business's 50-day moving average price is $78.55 and its 200 day moving average price is $77.77.

American States Water (NYSE:AWR - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 7th. The utilities provider reported $0.70 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.70. American States Water had a net margin of 20.03% and a return on equity of 13.63%. The business had revenue of $148.01 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $142.00 million. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.62 EPS. The company's revenue was up 9.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that American States Water will post 3.34 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American States Water Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 3rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 19th were issued a $0.4655 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 19th. This represents a $1.86 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.40%. American States Water's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 57.23%.

Institutional Trading of American States Water

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in AWR. Rhumbline Advisers increased its position in American States Water by 1.8% during the 1st quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 120,154 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $9,454,000 after purchasing an additional 2,070 shares in the last quarter. Strs Ohio acquired a new stake in shares of American States Water during the 1st quarter worth about $87,000. Jacobi Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of American States Water by 3.7% in the first quarter. Jacobi Capital Management LLC now owns 11,353 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $893,000 after buying an additional 403 shares during the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of American States Water by 16.6% in the first quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 20,129 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,584,000 after buying an additional 2,861 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Focus Partners Wealth lifted its stake in shares of American States Water by 148.3% during the first quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 5,597 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $440,000 after buying an additional 3,343 shares during the period. 75.24% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on AWR shares. Wall Street Zen raised American States Water from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, March 8th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded American States Water from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and raised their price target for the company from $76.00 to $84.00 in a research report on Thursday, May 8th.

About American States Water

American States Water Company, through its subsidiaries, provides water and electric services to residential, commercial, industrial, and other customers in the United States. It operates through three segments: Water, Electric, and Contracted Services. The company purchases, produces, distributes, and sells water, as well as distributes electricity.