American States Water (NYSE:AWR) Sets New 52-Week High - Here's Why

Key Points

• American States Water hit a new 52-week high, trading as high as $85.63 as investors pushed the stock higher.
• Analyst sentiment remains cautious overall, with multiple firms issuing Hold ratings and MarketBeat showing a consensus Hold on the stock.
• The utility reported mixed quarterly results: revenue beat estimates and rose 14.3% year over year, but EPS came in slightly below expectations; the company also paid a quarterly dividend of $0.504 per share, yielding about 2.4%.

American States Water Company (NYSE:AWR - Get Free Report) reached a new 52-week high on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $85.63 and last traded at $83.1660, with a volume of 368303 shares. The stock had previously closed at $83.14.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on AWR shares. Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of American States Water in a report on Monday, April 20th. Freedom Capital raised American States Water to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, June 29th. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded American States Water from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 2nd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold".

American States Water Trading Up 0.0%

The stock has a market cap of $3.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.23 and a beta of 0.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a current ratio of 1.22. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $78.24 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $75.76.

American States Water (NYSE:AWR - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.77 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $169.19 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $157.02 million. American States Water had a net margin of 19.66% and a return on equity of 13.06%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 14.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.70 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that American States Water Company will post 3.71 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American States Water Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 2nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 18th were issued a dividend of $0.504 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 18th. This represents a $2.02 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.4%. American States Water's payout ratio is presently 58.60%.

Insider Transactions at American States Water

In other news, SVP Paul J. Rowley sold 1,304 shares of American States Water stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.05, for a total transaction of $99,169.20. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 6,520 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $495,846. This trade represents a 16.67% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Anne M. Holloway sold 662 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.58, for a total value of $50,033.96. Following the sale, the director owned 39,418 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,979,212.44. This represents a 1.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.90% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of American States Water

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Wealthfront Advisers LLC lifted its stake in American States Water by 4.7% during the fourth quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC now owns 3,339 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $242,000 after purchasing an additional 150 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of American States Water by 6.2% in the 2nd quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 2,563 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $196,000 after purchasing an additional 150 shares during the period. Parallel Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of American States Water by 5.6% in the 4th quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 3,033 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $220,000 after buying an additional 161 shares in the last quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund raised its holdings in shares of American States Water by 2.3% in the 4th quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 8,849 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $641,000 after buying an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jacobi Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of American States Water by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Jacobi Capital Management LLC now owns 11,194 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $811,000 after buying an additional 211 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 75.24% of the company's stock.

About American States Water

American States Water Company NYSE: AWR, founded in 1929 and headquartered in San Dimas, California, is a publicly traded utility holding company. The company operates primarily through two regulated segments—water and electric utilities—and provides non-regulated water system services. Over its history, American States Water has expanded its footprint through strategic acquisitions and organic growth, positioning itself as a reliable provider of essential services in its core territories.

Within its regulated water utility segment, American States Water serves more than 250,000 residential, commercial and industrial customers across 35 communities in six counties of California.

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