Artesian Resources (NASDAQ:ARTNA) Stock Crosses Above 200-Day Moving Average - Should You Sell?

Artesian Resources Corporation (NASDAQ:ARTNA - Get Free Report) shares crossed above its two hundred day moving average during trading on Monday . The stock has a two hundred day moving average of $32.68 and traded as high as $34.37. Artesian Resources shares last traded at $34.18, with a volume of 19,230 shares.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Wall Street Zen raised Artesian Resources from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, May 5th.

Artesian Resources Trading Down 0.4%

The company has a quick ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $33.82 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $32.71. The company has a market capitalization of $344.04 million, a PE ratio of 16.04 and a beta of 0.33.

Artesian Resources (NASDAQ:ARTNA - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 5th. The utilities provider reported $0.53 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.35 by $0.18. Artesian Resources had a net margin of 19.60% and a return on equity of 8.98%. The business had revenue of $25.89 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $25.00 million. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Artesian Resources Corporation will post 1.92 earnings per share for the current year.

Artesian Resources Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 27th. Investors of record on Friday, May 16th were given a dividend of $0.3074 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 16th. This represents a $1.23 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.68%. This is an increase from Artesian Resources's previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. Artesian Resources's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 59.13%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Artesian Resources

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in ARTNA. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake 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 worth $41,000 after acquiring an additional 1,307 shares during the last quarter. Aquatic Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Artesian Resources by 703.3% during the 4th quarter. Aquatic Capital Management LLC now owns 2,410 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $76,000 after acquiring an additional 2,110 shares during the last quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp boosted its stake in shares of Artesian Resources by 985.2% during the 1st quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 2,713 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $89,000 after acquiring an additional 2,463 shares during the last quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN boosted its stake in shares of Artesian Resources by 100.2% during the 4th quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 3,514 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $111,000 after acquiring an additional 1,759 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Moors & Cabot Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Artesian Resources during the 1st quarter worth $209,000. Institutional investors own 57.37% of the company's stock.

Artesian Resources Company Profile

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.