American Water Works Company, Inc. $AWK Shares Sold by Nuance Investments LLC

Key Points

• Nuance Investments LLC cut its stake in American Water Works by 62.4% in the fourth quarter, selling 62,365 shares and leaving it with 37,630 shares valued at about $4.9 million.
• American Water Works reported quarterly earnings of $1.01 per share, missing Wall Street estimates, though revenue of $1.21 billion came in above expectations and rose 5.7% year over year.
• The company raised its quarterly dividend to $0.895 per share, or $3.58 annually, for a yield of about 2.9%, while analysts currently rate the stock a consensus Hold.

Nuance Investments LLC lowered its position in shares of American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK - Free Report) by 62.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 37,630 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 62,365 shares during the quarter. Nuance Investments LLC's holdings in American Water Works were worth $4,911,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Salomon & Ludwin LLC increased its stake in shares of American Water Works by 71.7% during the 4th quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 194 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares during the last quarter. Midwest Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in American Water Works in the 4th quarter valued at $39,000. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp boosted its holdings in American Water Works by 803.1% in the 3rd quarter. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp now owns 289 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 257 shares during the period. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in American Water Works in the 4th quarter valued at $40,000. Finally, Clayton Financial Group LLC bought a new position in shares of American Water Works during the 4th quarter worth about $40,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.58% of the company's stock.

American Water Works Trading Up 1.9%

Shares of American Water Works stock opened at $124.63 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $129.73 and a 200-day moving average of $130.83. The stock has a market cap of $24.34 billion, a PE ratio of 22.10, a PEG ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.62. American Water Works Company, Inc. has a 52-week low of $120.57 and a 52-week high of $147.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16, a quick ratio of 0.34 and a current ratio of 0.37.

American Water Works (NYSE:AWK - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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). The firm had revenue of $1.21 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.17 billion. American Water Works had a return on equity of 10.20% and a net margin of 21.17%.The company's revenue for the quarter was up 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.05 EPS. American Water Works has set its FY 2026 guidance at 6.020-6.120 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that American Water Works Company, Inc. will post 6.09 EPS for the current year.

American Water Works Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 2nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 12th were issued a dividend of $0.895 per share. This represents a $3.58 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, May 12th. This is a positive change from American Water Works's previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. American Water Works's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 63.48%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Bank of America dropped their target price on shares of American Water Works from $147.00 to $134.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 21st. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of American Water Works from a "strong sell" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Sunday, April 26th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of American Water Works in a research report on Friday, March 27th. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of American Water Works from $122.00 to $124.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company set a $131.00 price objective on shares of American Water Works in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, American Water Works has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $138.11.

American Water Works 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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