HighTower Advisors LLC Buys 11,430 Shares of American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK)

Key Points

• HighTower Advisors LLC increased its stake in American Water Works by 2.2% during Q1, now owning approximately $78.8 million worth of shares, while institutional investors hold 86.58% of the company's stock.
• The company reported EPS of $1.48 for the last quarter, missing expectations, but revenue increased by 11.1% year-over-year to $1.28 billion.
• American Water Works declared a quarterly dividend of $0.8275 per share, representing an annual yield of 2.3%, with the ex-dividend date on August 12.

HighTower Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK - Free Report) by 2.2% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 534,306 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 11,430 shares during the quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC owned about 0.27% of American Water Works worth $78,821,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of AWK. Cloud Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of American Water Works in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Capital A Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in American Water Works during the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. Banque Transatlantique SA acquired a new position in American Water Works during the 4th quarter worth approximately $46,000. Wayfinding Financial LLC acquired a new position in American Water Works during the 1st quarter worth approximately $48,000. Finally, Colonial Trust Co SC boosted its position in American Water Works by 78.3% during the 4th quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC now owns 410 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $51,000 after acquiring an additional 180 shares during the last quarter. 86.58% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CAO Melissa K. Wikle sold 2,825 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $143.28, for a total value of $404,766.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 7,572 shares of the company's stock, valued at $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 available through this link. 0.11% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have weighed in on AWK. Barclays reduced their price target on American Water Works from $138.00 to $128.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. Mizuho upped their price target on American Water Works from $148.00 to $149.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Argus increased their price objective on American Water Works from $155.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday. Wall Street Zen downgraded American Water Works from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on American Water Works from $147.00 to $141.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 1st. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $143.30.

American Water Works Stock Performance

AWK stock traded up $0.38 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $143.79. 923,760 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,674,240. The company has a current ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 0.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15. The firm has a market capitalization of $28.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.91, a P/E/G ratio of 3.39 and a beta of 0.65. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $141.71 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $140.41. American Water Works Company, Inc. has a 12 month low of $118.74 and a 12 month high of $155.50.

American Water Works (NYSE:AWK - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The utilities provider reported $1.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.53 by ($0.05). The company had revenue of $1.28 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.22 billion. American Water Works had a return on equity of 10.34% and a net margin of 21.91%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 11.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.42 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that American Water Works Company, Inc. will post 5.71 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Water Works Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 3rd. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 12th will be paid a $0.8275 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 12th. This represents a $3.31 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.3%. American Water Works's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 59.64%.

American Water Works 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.