Ameriprise Financial Inc. Lowers Stock Holdings in American States Water (NYSE:AWR)

Ameriprise Financial Inc. decreased its holdings in shares of American States Water (NYSE:AWR - Free Report) by 6.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 99,498 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 6,327 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. owned approximately 0.27% of American States Water worth $7,733,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC raised its holdings in American States Water by 3.1% during the fourth quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 4,925 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $383,000 after purchasing an additional 150 shares in the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System raised its holdings in American States Water by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 10,871 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $845,000 after purchasing an additional 151 shares in the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP raised its holdings in American States Water by 15.0% during the fourth quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 1,262 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $91,000 after purchasing an additional 165 shares in the last quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System raised its holdings in American States Water by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 18,300 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,422,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Summit Investment Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in American States Water by 5.4% during the fourth quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 3,900 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $303,000 after purchasing an additional 201 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.24% of the company's stock.

American States Water Price Performance

American States Water stock traded up $0.31 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $78.81. The company had a trading volume of 256,653 shares, compared to its average volume of 217,349. American States Water has a 1 year low of $69.46 and a 1 year high of $87.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.76. The company has a market capitalization of $3.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.86, a P/E/G ratio of 12.92 and a beta of 0.64. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $78.32 and its 200-day simple moving average is $78.22.

American States Water (NYSE:AWR - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The utilities provider reported $0.70 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.70. American States Water had a net margin of 20.03% and a return on equity of 13.63%. The company had revenue of $148.01 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $142.00 million. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.62 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 9.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that American States Water will post 3.34 EPS for the current year.

American States Water Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 3rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 19th will be issued a $0.4655 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 19th. This represents a $1.86 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.36%. American States Water's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 57.23%.

Insider Buying and Selling at American States Water

In other news, Director Diana M. Bonta sold 969 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.00, for a total transaction of $74,613.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 15,931 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,226,687. This trade represents a 5.73% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.83% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AWR has been the subject of several analyst reports. Wall Street Zen raised shares of American States Water from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, March 8th. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of American States Water from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and increased their price target for the stock from $76.00 to $84.00 in a report on Thursday, May 8th. Finally, Bank of America cut shares of American States Water from a "neutral" rating to an "underperform" rating and cut their price target for the stock from $85.00 to $71.00 in a report on Monday, February 3rd.

About American States Water

American States Water Company, through its subsidiaries, provides water and electric services to residential, commercial, industrial, and other customers in the United States. It operates through three segments: Water, Electric, and Contracted Services. The company purchases, produces, distributes, and sells water, as well as distributes electricity.