12,622 Shares in American States Water Company $AWR Purchased by Man Group plc

Key Points

• Man Group plc acquired 12,622 shares of American States Water in the second quarter, valued at approximately $1.04 million. Institutional investors collectively own 75.24% of AWR.
• American States Water exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $1.09 EPS versus the $0.93 consensus and revenue of $181.29 million, up 11.2% year over year.
• The company raised its quarterly dividend to $0.5455, implying an annualized payout of $2.18 and a 2.5% yield. Analysts’ average rating remains “Hold.”

Man Group plc acquired a new stake in American States Water Company (NYSE:AWR - Free Report) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 12,622 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,043,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in shares of American States Water in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $602,749,000. Morgan Stanley raised its position in shares of American States Water by 128.8% during the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 1,347,240 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $97,648,000 after acquiring an additional 758,452 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new stake in shares of American States Water during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $28,337,000. Legal & General Group Plc bought a new position in American States Water during the second quarter worth $18,870,000. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its stake in American States Water by 512.8% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 187,949 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $13,780,000 after purchasing an additional 157,276 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.24% of the company's stock.

American States Water Stock Performance

Shares of AWR opened at $88.18 on Thursday. American States Water Company has a 1 year low of $69.45 and a 1 year high of $91.72. The company has a market cap of $3.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.37 and a beta of 0.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a current ratio of 0.98. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $86.57 and a 200-day moving average of $79.87.

American States Water (NYSE:AWR - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.09 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.93 by $0.16. The business had revenue of $181.29 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $171.72 million. American States Water had a net margin of 20.52% and a return on equity of 13.50%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 11.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.87 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that American States Water Company will post 3.68 earnings per share for the current year.

American States Water Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 2nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 17th were given a $0.5455 dividend. This is a positive change from American States Water's previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 17th. This represents a $2.18 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.5%. American States Water's payout ratio is currently 59.73%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have weighed in on AWR. Freedom Capital upgraded shares of American States Water to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, June 29th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of American States Water from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, Zacks Research lowered shares of American States Water from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 2nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold".

Insider Activity at American States Water

In other news, Director Anne M. Holloway sold 900 shares of American States Water stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $88.86, for a total transaction of $79,974.00. Following the sale, the director owned 38,518 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,422,709.48. The trade was a 2.28% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.90% 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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