Artesian Resources' (ARTNA) Hold (C-) Rating Reiterated at Weiss Ratings

Key Points

• Artesian Resources' stock has a "hold (C-)" rating reaffirmed by Weiss Ratings as of the latest report.
• The company reported a quarterly EPS of $0.61, exceeding the consensus estimate of $0.56, with revenue of $28.55 million.
• Insiders own 20.59% of the stock, and significant recent trades indicate a mix of buying and selling activity among institutional investors.

Artesian Resources (NASDAQ:ARTNA - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "hold (c-)" rating reaffirmed by investment analysts at Weiss Ratings in a research report issued to clients and investors on Friday,Weiss Ratings reports.

Artesian Resources Trading Down 0.0%

Shares of Artesian Resources stock traded down $0.01 during trading on Friday, reaching $33.37. 11,896 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 34,695. The company has a quick ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. The stock's fifty day moving average is $32.87 and its 200 day moving average is $33.47. The firm has a market cap of $344.04 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.38 and a beta of 0.34. Artesian Resources has a 1 year low of $29.45 and a 1 year high of $36.67.

Artesian Resources (NASDAQ:ARTNA - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 4th. The utilities provider reported $0.61 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.56 by $0.05. Artesian Resources had a net margin of 20.84% and a return on equity of 9.55%. The business had revenue of $28.55 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $29.00 million. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Artesian Resources will post 1.92 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, SVP John M. Thaeder sold 1,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $33.37, for a total value of $33,370.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 20,592 shares in the company, valued at $687,155.04. The trade was a 4.63% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 20.59% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Artesian Resources

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in shares of Artesian Resources by 4,084.4% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,339 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $41,000 after acquiring an additional 1,307 shares during the period. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC raised its stake in Artesian Resources by 131.9% during the 1st quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 24,001 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $784,000 after acquiring an additional 13,650 shares during the period. Roffman Miller Associates Inc. PA raised its stake in Artesian Resources by 17.9% during the 1st quarter. Roffman Miller Associates Inc. PA now owns 91,294 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $2,981,000 after acquiring an additional 13,884 shares during the period. LPL Financial LLC raised its stake in Artesian Resources by 1.7% during the 1st quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 38,968 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,272,000 after acquiring an additional 643 shares during the period. Finally, XTX Topco Ltd bought a new stake in Artesian Resources during the 1st quarter worth approximately $247,000. Institutional investors own 57.37% of the company's stock.

About Artesian Resources

Artesian Resources Corporation, through its subsidiaries, provides water, wastewater, and other services in Delaware, Maryland, and Pennsylvania. The company distributes and sells water to residential, commercial, industrial, governmental, municipal, and utility customers, as well as for public and private fire protection in the states of Delaware, Maryland, and Pennsylvania; and offers wastewater collection, treatment infrastructure, and wastewater services to customers in Delaware.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.