American States Water (NYSE:AWR) Upgraded to Buy at Freedom Broker

Key Points

• Freedom Broker upgraded American States Water to Buy from Hold and raised its price target to $99 from $89, implying about 10% upside from the stock’s then-current price.
• Analyst sentiment is moderately positive: the stock’s consensus rating is “Moderate Buy,” with an average target price of $99.
• Quarterly results fell short of expectations: EPS was $1.06 versus a $1.09 consensus estimate, and revenue was $192.53 million versus forecasts of $195.98 million, though revenue rose 5.4% year over year.

American States Water (NYSE:AWR - Get Free Report) was upgraded by research analysts at Freedom Broker from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report issued on Friday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a $99.00 price objective on the utilities provider's stock, up from their prior price objective of $89.00. Freedom Broker's price target points to a potential upside of 10.02% from the stock's current price.

Separately, Weiss Ratings reiterated a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of American States Water in a report on Wednesday, October 28th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, American States Water has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $99.00.

American States Water Stock Up 1.3%

NYSE AWR traded up $1.15 on Friday, hitting $89.98. 286,990 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 284,697. American States Water has a fifty-two week low of $69.50 and a fifty-two week high of $91.93. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $85.06 and a 200-day moving average price of $80.32. The company has a quick ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75. The company has a market cap of $3.57 billion, a PE ratio of 24.65, a PEG ratio of 3.35 and a beta of 0.54.

American States Water (NYSE:AWR - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 4th. The utilities provider reported $1.06 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.09 by ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $192.53 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $195.98 million. American States Water had a net margin of 20.39% and a return on equity of 13.39%. American States Water's revenue for the quarter was up 5.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.06 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that American States Water will post 3.68 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Anne Holloway sold 900 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $88.86, for a total value of $79,974.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 38,518 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,422,709.48. This represents a 2.28% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.90% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On American States Water

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new position in shares of American States Water in the 2nd quarter valued at about $602,749,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new stake in shares of American States Water in the second quarter valued at about $28,337,000. Legal & General Group Plc purchased a new stake in American States Water during the second quarter worth about $18,870,000. Bank of America Corp DE purchased a new stake in American States Water during the second quarter worth about $12,877,000. Finally, Ieq Capital LLC purchased a new stake in American States Water during the second quarter worth about $8,401,000. 75.24% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

American States Water Company Profile

American States Water Company NYSE: AWR is a water and utility services company that provides regulated water and electric services, as well as contracted operations and maintenance services. The company serves residential, commercial, industrial and public-sector customers through its operating subsidiaries.

Through Golden State Water Company, American States Water supplies water to communities primarily in California. Its Bear Valley Electric Service subsidiary provides electric distribution service in the Big Bear area of San Bernardino County, California.

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