American Water Works Company, Inc. $AWK Shares Purchased by Cbre Investment Management Listed Real Assets LLC

Key Points

• CBRE Investment Management boosted its stake in American Water Works by 82.7% in the fourth quarter, ending with 21,430 shares valued at about $2.8 million. Institutional ownership remains very high, with funds and hedge funds holding 86.58% of the stock.
• American Water Works recently completed a $315 million acquisition of Nexus Water Group systems across eight states, expanding its regulated footprint and adding potential long-term rate-base growth. The company also closed several subsidiary system acquisitions on June 1 in multiple states.
• The stock has been under pressure despite the deal activity, and analysts currently have a Hold consensus with an average target price of $138.11. AWK also posted quarterly EPS of $1.01, missing estimates, while raising its quarterly dividend to $0.895 per share.

Cbre Investment Management Listed Real Assets LLC raised its holdings in shares of American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK - Free Report) by 82.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 21,430 shares of the utilities provider's stock after buying an additional 9,698 shares during the period. Cbre Investment Management Listed Real Assets LLC's holdings in American Water Works were worth $2,797,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its position in shares of American Water Works by 2.2% during the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,219,816 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $290,729,000 after purchasing an additional 47,977 shares in the last quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. lifted its position in shares of American Water Works by 5.6% during the third quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. now owns 85,976 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $11,967,000 after purchasing an additional 4,553 shares in the last quarter. Aberdeen Group plc lifted its position in shares of American Water Works by 10.7% during the fourth quarter. Aberdeen Group plc now owns 489,371 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $63,863,000 after purchasing an additional 47,352 shares in the last quarter. TSP Capital Management Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of American Water Works during the fourth quarter worth $1,559,000. Finally, Reaves W H & Co. Inc. lifted its position in shares of American Water Works by 80.1% during the third quarter. Reaves W H & Co. Inc. now owns 281,145 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $39,133,000 after purchasing an additional 125,000 shares in the last quarter. 86.58% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Key American Water Works News

Here are the key news stories impacting American Water Works this week:

• Positive Sentiment: American Water completed a $315 million acquisition of Nexus Water Group systems in eight states, expanding its regulated footprint and adding long-term rate-base growth potential. American Water Completes Purchase of Nexus Water Group Systems in Eight States
• Positive Sentiment: Several subsidiary acquisitions were completed on June 1, including systems in New Jersey, Virginia, Pennsylvania, Kentucky, Tennessee, Indiana, and Illinois, which should support customer and regulated asset growth. New Jersey American Water Completes Purchase of Montague Sewer & Water Company's Utility Systems
• Neutral Sentiment: MarketWatch noted that AWK underperformed peers during Monday trading, suggesting investors are not fully rewarding the acquisition news yet. American Water Works Co. stock underperforms Monday when compared to competitors
• Negative Sentiment: The stock’s weakness may also reflect investor caution around the size of the acquisition and its near-term capital spending needs, even though the assets are regulated.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently commented on AWK shares. Truist Financial reduced their target price on shares of American Water Works from $137.00 to $130.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday. Wall Street Zen raised shares of American Water Works from a "strong sell" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Sunday, April 26th. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of American Water Works from $122.00 to $124.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $131.00 target price on shares of American Water Works in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Finally, Bank of America cut their price target on shares of American Water Works from $147.00 to $134.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 21st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $138.11.

American Water Works Stock Down 1.8%

AWK stock opened at $120.99 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 0.37 and a quick ratio of 0.34. American Water Works Company, Inc. has a 1-year low of $120.61 and a 1-year high of $147.87. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $130.64 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $131.04. The firm has a market cap of $23.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.45, a PEG ratio of 2.67 and a beta of 0.62.

American Water Works (NYSE:AWK - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The utilities provider reported $1.01 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.10 by ($0.09). American Water Works had a net margin of 21.17% and a return on equity of 10.20%. The business had revenue of $1.21 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.17 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.05 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. American Water Works has set its FY 2026 guidance at 6.020-6.120 EPS. Research analysts predict that American Water Works Company, Inc. will post 6.09 EPS for the current year.

American Water Works Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 2nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 12th will be paid a dividend of $0.895 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 12th. This is a positive change from American Water Works's previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. This represents a $3.58 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.0%. American Water Works's payout ratio is presently 63.48%.

American Water Works Company Profile

American Water Works Company, Inc NYSE: AWK is a publicly traded utility company that provides water and wastewater services in the United States. Its core business is the operation, management and maintenance of regulated water and wastewater systems that deliver potable water, collect and treat wastewater, and provide related customer services to residential, commercial and industrial customers as well as municipalities. The company's operations include water treatment and distribution, wastewater collection and treatment, meter reading and billing, emergency repairs, and long-term infrastructure planning and capital project execution.

In addition to its regulated utility operations, American Water offers complementary nonregulated services and solutions that support system reliability and customer needs.

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