American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK) Shares Sold by iSAM Funds UK Ltd

iSAM Funds UK Ltd lessened its holdings in shares of American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK - Free Report) by 38.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 4,626 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 2,938 shares during the quarter. iSAM Funds UK Ltd's holdings in American Water Works were worth $576,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Sovran Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in American Water Works during the 4th quarter worth $277,000. M&T Bank Corp boosted its stake in American Water Works by 3.3% during the 4th quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 65,249 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $8,123,000 after purchasing an additional 2,113 shares during the last quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. boosted its stake in American Water Works by 13.0% during the 4th quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. now owns 77,492 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $9,647,000 after purchasing an additional 8,930 shares during the last quarter. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. boosted its stake in American Water Works by 5.0% during the 4th quarter. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. now owns 50,901 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $6,337,000 after purchasing an additional 2,440 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Merit Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in American Water Works during the 4th quarter worth $419,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.58% of the company's stock.

American Water Works Price Performance

Shares of AWK opened at $143.59 on Tuesday. American Water Works Company, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $118.74 and a fifty-two week high of $155.50. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $144.31 and its 200 day moving average price is $135.02. The company has a market cap of $28.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.64, a PEG ratio of 2.80 and a beta of 0.73. The company has a quick ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 0.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21.

American Water Works (NYSE:AWK - Get Free Report) last announced 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.09 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.95 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 13.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast that American Water Works Company, Inc. will post 5.71 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Water Works Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 3rd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 13th will be issued a $0.8275 dividend. This is a boost from American Water Works's previous quarterly dividend of $0.77. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 13th. This represents a $3.31 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.31%. American Water Works's dividend payout ratio is presently 60.29%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

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.

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