Manchester Capital Management LLC Purchases New Holdings in Middlesex Water Company (NASDAQ:MSEX)

Key Points

• Manchester Capital Management LLC acquired 13,515 shares of Middlesex Water Company, valued at approximately $866,000, during the first quarter.
• Middlesex Water Company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78 and reported earnings per share of $0.60, missing the analyst consensus of $0.68.
• The company will pay a quarterly dividend of $0.34 on September 2nd, representing a dividend yield of 2.6% and a payout ratio of 56.43%.

Manchester Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Middlesex Water Company (NASDAQ:MSEX - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 13,515 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $866,000. Manchester Capital Management LLC owned approximately 0.08% of Middlesex Water at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Middlesex Water in the 4th quarter worth $522,000. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Middlesex Water by 62.9% during the 4th quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 29,538 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,555,000 after purchasing an additional 11,402 shares during the last quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS bought a new position in shares of Middlesex Water in the 4th quarter valued at about $379,000. LPL Financial LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Middlesex Water by 19.6% in the 4th quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 26,921 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,417,000 after purchasing an additional 4,415 shares during the period. Finally, Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Middlesex Water by 1,006.4% in the fourth quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 520 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 473 shares during the period. 79.52% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Janney Montgomery Scott raised shares of Middlesex Water from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $66.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Monday, May 12th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Middlesex Water from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $61.00.

Middlesex Water Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:MSEX traded up $0.79 on Monday, hitting $53.18. 157,466 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 149,211. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $55.29 and its 200 day moving average price is $56.80. The firm has a market capitalization of $958.30 million, a P/E ratio of 21.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.61 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a current ratio of 0.41, a quick ratio of 0.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. Middlesex Water Company has a 1-year low of $48.18 and a 1-year high of $70.73.

Middlesex Water (NASDAQ:MSEX - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The utilities provider reported $0.60 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.68 by ($0.08). Middlesex Water had a net margin of 22.15% and a return on equity of 9.67%. The firm had revenue of $49.32 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $52.60 million. Sell-side analysts predict that Middlesex Water Company will post 2.34 EPS for the current year.

Middlesex Water Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, August 15th will be paid a $0.34 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 15th. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.6%. Middlesex Water's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 56.20%.

Middlesex Water Company Profile

Middlesex Water Company owns and operates regulated water utility and wastewater systems. It operates in Regulated and Non-Regulated segments. The Regulated segment collects, treats, and distributes water on a retail and wholesale basis to residential, commercial, industrial, and fire protection customers, as well as provides regulated wastewater systems in New Jersey and Delaware.