Aberdeen Group plc Purchases 122,720 Shares of American Water Works Company, Inc. $AWK

Key Points

• Aberdeen Group plc has increased its stake in American Water Works by 40%, acquiring an additional 122,720 shares, bringing its total holdings to 429,304 shares valued at approximately $63.4 million.
• American Water Works recently reported earnings of $1.48 per share, which missed analysts' expectations of $1.53, despite a revenue increase of 11.1% year-over-year.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.8275, which translates to an annualized dividend yield of 2.3%, set to be distributed on September 3rd.

Aberdeen Group plc increased its holdings in American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK - Free Report) by 40.0% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 429,304 shares of the utilities provider's stock after buying an additional 122,720 shares during the quarter. Aberdeen Group plc owned about 0.22% of American Water Works worth $63,412,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. PFG Advisors lifted its holdings in American Water Works by 33.4% in the first quarter. PFG Advisors now owns 9,699 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,431,000 after acquiring an additional 2,429 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its position in shares of American Water Works by 2.1% during the 1st quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 124,352 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $18,344,000 after buying an additional 2,570 shares in the last quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. increased its holdings in American Water Works by 2.2% in the 1st quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. now owns 10,547 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,556,000 after acquiring an additional 229 shares in the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its position in American Water Works by 45.2% during the first quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 2,326 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $342,000 after acquiring an additional 724 shares during the period. Finally, Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. lifted its holdings in American Water Works by 21.5% during the first quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 7,692 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,135,000 after purchasing an additional 1,359 shares in the last quarter. 86.58% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at American Water Works

In related news, CAO Melissa K. Wikle sold 2,825 shares of American Water Works stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $143.28, for a total transaction of $404,766.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 7,572 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,084,916.16. The trade was a 27.17% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.11% of the company's stock.

American Water Works Stock Up 0.0%

Shares of NYSE:AWK traded up $0.0280 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $145.6480. The company had a trading volume of 182,141 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,424,236. The business's 50 day moving average price is $141.95 and its 200 day moving average price is $140.83. American Water Works Company, Inc. has a 1-year low of $118.74 and a 1-year high of $155.50. The company has a quick ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 0.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15. The stock has a market cap of $28.42 billion, a PE ratio of 26.25, a P/E/G ratio of 3.44 and a beta of 0.65.

American Water Works (NYSE:AWK - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The utilities provider reported $1.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.53 by ($0.05). American Water Works had a net margin of 21.91% and a return on equity of 10.34%. The firm had revenue of $1.28 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.22 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.42 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 11.1% compared to the same quarter last year. American Water Works has set its FY 2025 guidance at 5.700-5.750 EPS. Research analysts forecast that American Water Works Company, Inc. will post 5.71 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Water Works Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 3rd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 12th will be issued a $0.8275 dividend. This represents a $3.31 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 12th. American Water Works's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 59.64%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Evercore ISI upped their price target on shares of American Water Works from $139.00 to $148.00 and gave the stock an "in-line" rating in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Barclays decreased their target price on shares of American Water Works from $138.00 to $128.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. Mizuho increased their price objective on American Water Works from $148.00 to $149.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on American Water Works from $147.00 to $141.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded American Water Works from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and a consensus price target of $143.30.

About American Water Works

American Water Works Company, Inc, through its subsidiaries, provides water and wastewater services in the United States. It offers water and wastewater services to approximately 1,700 communities in 14 states serving approximately 3.5 million active customers. The company serves residential customers; commercial customers, including food and beverage providers, commercial property developers and proprietors, and energy suppliers; fire service and private fire customers; industrial customers, such as large-scale manufacturers, mining, and production operations; public authorities comprising government buildings and other public sector facilities, such as schools and universities; and other utilities and community water and wastewater systems.