Aquatic Capital Management LLC Sells 6,010 Shares of American States Water (NYSE:AWR)

Aquatic Capital Management LLC decreased its holdings in American States Water (NYSE:AWR - Free Report) by 71.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,390 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 6,010 shares during the quarter. Aquatic Capital Management LLC's holdings in American States Water were worth $186,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Barclays PLC raised its stake in shares of American States Water by 172.8% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 78,706 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $6,554,000 after purchasing an additional 49,851 shares during the period. Virtu Financial LLC acquired a new stake in American States Water in the third quarter worth $287,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of American States Water by 107.1% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 381,981 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $31,815,000 after purchasing an additional 197,556 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in American States Water by 14.4% during the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,720 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $134,000 after acquiring an additional 216 shares during the period. Finally, Essex Savings Bank acquired a new position in American States Water during the 4th quarter valued at about $273,000. 75.24% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other American States Water news, Director Diana M. Bonta sold 969 shares of American States Water stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.00, for a total value of $74,613.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 15,931 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,226,687. The trade was a 5.73 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 0.83% of the company's stock.

American States Water Trading Down 1.3 %

Shares of NYSE AWR traded down $1.05 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $79.68. The company's stock had a trading volume of 195,036 shares, compared to its average volume of 217,037. American States Water has a one year low of $69.46 and a one year high of $87.50. 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 stock has a market cap of $3.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 12.92 and a beta of 0.64. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $78.22 and its 200-day simple moving average is $78.75.

American States Water (NYSE:AWR - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 7th. The utilities provider reported $0.70 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.73 by ($0.03). American States Water had a net margin of 20.03% and a return on equity of 13.63%. The business's revenue was up 9.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.62 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that American States Water will post 3.34 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American States Water Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 3rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 19th will be given a dividend of $0.4655 per share. This represents a $1.86 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.34%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 19th. American States Water's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 58.68%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have issued reports on AWR. Wells Fargo & Company cut American States Water from an "equal weight" rating to an "underweight" rating and dropped their price target for the company from $84.00 to $77.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of American States Water from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, March 8th. Finally, Bank of America lowered American States Water from a "neutral" rating to an "underperform" rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $85.00 to $71.00 in a report on Monday, February 3rd.

American States Water Company Profile

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.