American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK) Shares Sold by Magellan Asset Management Ltd

Key Points

• Magellan Asset Management Ltd reduced its stake in American Water Works by 1.1%, now holding 157,950 shares valued at $23.3 million.
• American Water Works announced a quarterly dividend of $0.8275 per share, reflecting an annual yield of 2.3%.
• Equities research analysts have mixed ratings on AWK, with a consensus target price of $142.00 and four analysts rating the stock as a "sell."

Magellan Asset Management Ltd cut its stake in shares of American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK - Free Report) by 1.1% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 157,950 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 1,768 shares during the quarter. Magellan Asset Management Ltd owned 0.08% of American Water Works worth $23,301,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Cloud Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of American Water Works in the first quarter worth $29,000. Capital A Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of American Water Works in the fourth quarter worth about $33,000. Banque Transatlantique SA bought a new position in American Water Works during the fourth quarter valued at about $46,000. Wayfinding Financial LLC bought a new position in American Water Works during the first quarter valued at about $48,000. Finally, Colonial Trust Co SC increased its stake in American Water Works by 78.3% during the fourth quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC now owns 410 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $51,000 after acquiring an additional 180 shares during the period. 86.58% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on AWK shares. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on 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. Wall Street Zen downgraded American Water Works from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. Barclays reduced their target price on American Water Works from $138.00 to $128.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 10th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on American Water Works from $147.00 to $141.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 1st. Finally, UBS Group reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $156.00 price objective (up previously from $154.00) on shares of American Water Works in a report on Friday, July 11th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $142.00.

American Water Works Stock Performance

Shares of American Water Works stock opened at $145.29 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $141.41 and a two-hundred day moving average of $139.87. The stock has a market capitalization of $28.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.18, a PEG ratio of 3.27 and a beta of 0.65. American Water Works Company, Inc. has a 52 week low of $118.74 and a 52 week high of $155.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 0.32 and a current ratio of 0.35.

American Water Works (NYSE:AWK - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The utilities provider reported $1.48 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.53 by ($0.05). American Water Works had a net margin of 21.91% and a return on equity of 10.34%. The business had revenue of $1.28 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.22 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.42 EPS. The business's revenue was up 11.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts predict that American Water Works Company, Inc. will post 5.71 EPS for the current year.

American Water Works Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 3rd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 12th will be issued a dividend of $0.8275 per share. This represents a $3.31 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, August 12th. American Water Works's dividend payout ratio is 59.64%.

Insider Transactions at American Water Works

In other American Water Works news, CAO Melissa K. Wikle sold 2,825 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $143.28, for a total transaction of $404,766.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 7,572 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,084,916.16. This represents a 27.17% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 0.11% of the company's stock.

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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