Alliancebernstein L.P. Cuts Position in American Water Works Company, Inc. $AWK

Key Points

• Alliancebernstein L.P. reduced its position in American Water Works Company by 22.3% during the first quarter, now holding 268,366 shares valued at approximately $39.6 million.
• American Water Works has seen mixed ratings from analysts, with two "Buy," six "Hold," and three "Sell" ratings, and a consensus target price of $143.30.
• The company recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.8275, with an annualized yield of 2.4% and a payout ratio of 59.64%.

Alliancebernstein L.P. reduced its position in shares of American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK - Free Report) by 22.3% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 268,366 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 77,149 shares during the period. Alliancebernstein L.P. owned 0.14% of American Water Works worth $39,589,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Cloud Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in American Water Works during the 1st quarter worth approximately $29,000. WPG Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in American Water Works during the 1st quarter worth approximately $29,000. Capital A Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in American Water Works during the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. Wayfinding Financial LLC purchased a new stake in American Water Works during the 1st quarter worth approximately $48,000. Finally, Millstone Evans Group LLC purchased a new stake in American Water Works during the 1st quarter worth approximately $55,000. 86.58% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have commented on the company. Argus boosted their price objective on American Water Works from $155.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 14th. Barclays lowered their target price on American Water Works from $138.00 to $128.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 10th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on American Water Works from $147.00 to $141.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 1st. Wall Street Zen cut American Water Works from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. Finally, UBS Group lowered their target price on American Water Works from $156.00 to $151.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, August 12th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Reduce" and a consensus target price of $143.30.

American Water Works Trading Down 2.5%

AWK opened at $139.99 on Tuesday. American Water Works Company, Inc. has a one year low of $118.74 and a one year high of $155.50. The stock has a market capitalization of $27.31 billion, a PE ratio of 25.22, a P/E/G ratio of 3.40 and a beta of 0.69. The business's 50 day moving average price is $142.62 and its 200 day moving average price is $142.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 0.32 and a current ratio of 0.35.

American Water Works (NYSE:AWK - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 30th. The utilities provider reported $1.48 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 business had revenue of $1.28 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.22 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.42 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 11.1% on a year-over-year basis. American Water Works has set its FY 2025 guidance at 5.700-5.750 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that American Water Works Company, Inc. will post 5.71 EPS for the current year.

American Water Works Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 3rd. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 12th were issued a $0.8275 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 12th. This represents a $3.31 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.4%. American Water Works's dividend payout ratio is currently 59.64%.

American Water Works Profile

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.

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