Perennial Advisors LLC Grows Position in American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK)

Perennial Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK - Free Report) by 7.3% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 44,784 shares of the utilities provider's stock after acquiring an additional 3,065 shares during the period. American Water Works comprises approximately 1.3% of Perennial Advisors LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 26th largest holding. Perennial Advisors LLC's holdings in American Water Works were worth $6,607,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Providence First Trust Co bought a new position in American Water Works during the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of American Water Works during the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Capital A Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of American Water Works during the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of American Water Works by 54.2% in the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 293 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 103 shares during the period. Finally, Banque Transatlantique SA purchased a new position in American Water Works in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $46,000. 86.58% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

American Water Works Stock Down 1.4%

American Water Works stock traded down $1.93 on Monday, hitting $138.12. 156,382 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,218,100. The company has a current ratio of 0.39, a quick ratio of 0.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $143.96 and its 200 day simple moving average is $135.68. American Water Works Company, Inc. has a 1 year low of $118.74 and a 1 year high of $155.50. The firm has a market cap of $26.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.80 and a beta of 0.71.

American Water Works (NYSE:AWK - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The utilities provider reported $1.05 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.06 by ($0.01). American Water Works had a net margin of 22.44% and a return on equity of 10.29%. The firm had revenue of $1.14 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.09 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.95 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 13.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that American Water Works Company, Inc. will post 5.71 earnings per share for the current year.

American Water Works Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 3rd. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 13th were issued a dividend of $0.8275 per share. This represents a $3.31 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.40%. This is a positive change from American Water Works's previous quarterly dividend of $0.77. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, May 13th. American Water Works's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 60.29%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently commented on AWK. UBS Group downgraded shares of American Water Works from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, April 25th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on American Water Works from $142.00 to $147.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of American Water Works from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on shares of American Water Works from $139.00 to $148.00 and gave the company an "in-line" rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Barclays began coverage on shares of American Water Works in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. They set an "underweight" rating and a $138.00 target price on the stock. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, American Water Works presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $143.22.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other American Water Works news, CAO Melissa K. Wikle sold 2,825 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $143.28, for a total value of $404,766.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 7,572 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,084,916.16. This trade represents a 27.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.11% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

American Water Works Company 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.