Archford Capital Strategies LLC Purchases 4,792 Shares of American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK)

Archford Capital Strategies LLC raised its holdings in shares of American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK - Free Report) by 33.2% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 19,234 shares of the utilities provider's stock after buying an additional 4,792 shares during the quarter. Archford Capital Strategies LLC's holdings in American Water Works were worth $2,837,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Retirement Guys Formula LLC grew its position in American Water Works by 24.8% in the 1st quarter. Retirement Guys Formula LLC now owns 7,144 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,054,000 after purchasing an additional 1,420 shares during the last quarter. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in American Water Works during the first quarter worth about $111,000. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. increased its stake in American Water Works by 4.4% during the first quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 110,882 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $16,357,000 after acquiring an additional 4,656 shares during the period. Blossom Wealth Management increased its stake in American Water Works by 23.7% during the first quarter. Blossom Wealth Management now owns 2,190 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $323,000 after acquiring an additional 420 shares during the period. Finally, Chapin Davis Inc. raised its holdings in American Water Works by 12.2% in the 1st quarter. Chapin Davis Inc. now owns 1,612 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $238,000 after acquiring an additional 175 shares in the last quarter. 86.58% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

American Water Works Price Performance

NYSE:AWK traded down $1.62 on Thursday, reaching $138.43. The stock had a trading volume of 929,893 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,221,249. The company has a quick ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 0.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26. The company has a market capitalization of $26.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.37 and a beta of 0.71. American Water Works Company, Inc. has a 1-year low of $118.74 and a 1-year high of $155.50. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $143.08 and a 200-day moving average price of $136.19.

American Water Works (NYSE:AWK - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The utilities provider reported $1.05 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.06 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $1.14 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.09 billion. American Water Works had a return on equity of 10.35% and a net margin of 22.24%. The firm's revenue was up 13.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.95 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that American Water Works Company, Inc. will post 5.71 EPS for the current year.

American Water Works Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 3rd. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 13th were given a dividend of $0.8275 per share. This is an increase from American Water Works's previous quarterly dividend of $0.77. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, May 13th. This represents a $3.31 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.39%. American Water Works's dividend payout ratio is 60.29%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on AWK shares. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective 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 report on Wednesday, May 14th. Barclays started 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 objective for the company. UBS Group lowered shares of American Water Works from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their target price 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. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $143.22.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other American Water Works news, CAO Melissa K. Wikle sold 2,825 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owns 7,572 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,084,916.16. The trade was a 27.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.11% of the company's stock.

About American Water Works

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.