American Water Works Company, Inc. $AWK Stock: Candriam S.C.A. Lowers Stake

Key Points

• Candriam S.C.A. cut its American Water Works stake by 39.2% in the third quarter, selling 96,076 shares and retaining 149,086 shares worth about $20.4 million.
• Other institutional investors made mixed moves, including Pictet Asset Management increasing its position by 442.6%; institutions and hedge funds own 86.58% of the company’s stock.
• American Water Works reported quarterly EPS and revenue below analyst expectations, though revenue rose 4.1% year over year. It declared a quarterly dividend of $0.895 per share, and analysts’ consensus rating was Hold.

Candriam S.C.A. cut its holdings in American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK - Free Report) by 39.2% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 149,086 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 96,076 shares during the quarter. Candriam S.C.A. owned 0.07% of American Water Works worth $20,358,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of AWK. Cullinan Associates Inc. bought a new stake in American Water Works in the third quarter worth $300,000. Ethic Inc. raised its stake in American Water Works by 44.0% during the third quarter. Ethic Inc. now owns 165,303 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $22,413,000 after purchasing an additional 50,488 shares in the last quarter. StoneX Group Inc. raised its stake in American Water Works by 33.3% during the third quarter. StoneX Group Inc. now owns 3,578 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $476,000 after purchasing an additional 894 shares in the last quarter. Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS bought a new position in American Water Works during the third quarter valued at $477,000. Finally, Pictet Asset Management Holding SA lifted its position in American Water Works by 442.6% during the third quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 1,213,669 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $157,134,000 after purchasing an additional 990,012 shares during the last quarter. 86.58% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

American Water Works Trading Up 0.1%

AWK stock opened at $150.42 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 0.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17. American Water Works Company, Inc. has a twelve month low of $120.57 and a twelve month high of $153.69. The stock has a market capitalization of $29.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.06 and a beta of 0.56. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $136.74 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $132.87.

American Water Works (NYSE:AWK - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 28th. The utilities provider reported $2.00 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.04 by ($0.04). The firm had revenue of $1.51 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.58 billion. American Water Works had a net margin of 21.26% and a return on equity of 10.14%. The company's revenue was up 4.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.94 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that American Water Works Company, Inc. will post 6.09 earnings per share for the current year.

American Water Works Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, November 12th will be given a $0.8950 dividend. This represents a $3.58 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 12th. American Water Works's dividend payout ratio is 62.05%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AWK has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Truist Financial set a $139.00 price objective on shares of American Water Works in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of American Water Works from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a report on Monday, November 2nd. Barclays dropped their price target on American Water Works from $130.00 to $127.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, October 19th. Huntington cut American Water Works from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research note on Thursday. Finally, UBS Group downgraded American Water Works from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and upped their price objective for the company from $153.00 to $162.00 in a research report on Friday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $141.14.

American Water Works Profile

American Water Works Company, Inc is a U.S. water and wastewater utility that provides services to residential, commercial, industrial, and public-sector customers. Its operations include treating and distributing drinking water, collecting and treating wastewater, and maintaining the infrastructure needed to deliver those services.

The company operates regulated water and wastewater utilities across multiple states, serving communities in regions including the Northeast, Midwest, and South.

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