Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership Buys 70,613 Shares of American States Water Company $AWR

Key Points

• Arrowstreet Capital increased its American States Water stake by 218.2% in the first quarter, purchasing 70,613 shares and bringing its total holding to 102,980 shares, worth approximately $7.8 million.
• American States Water reported quarterly revenue of $169.19 million, up 14.3% year over year, but earnings of $0.76 per share narrowly missed analyst expectations. Analysts maintain a consensus “Hold” rating.
• The company raised its quarterly dividend to $0.5455 per share from $0.50, implying an annualized dividend of $2.18 and a yield of about 2.6%.

Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership lifted its stake in American States Water Company (NYSE:AWR - Free Report) by 218.2% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 102,980 shares of the utilities provider's stock after buying an additional 70,613 shares during the quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership owned about 0.26% of American States Water worth $7,787,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Cetera Investment Advisers grew its stake in shares of American States Water by 7.2% during the 1st quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 56,609 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $4,281,000 after acquiring an additional 3,826 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP increased its holdings in American States Water by 2.1% in the 1st quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 836,092 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $63,225,000 after acquiring an additional 16,896 shares in the last quarter. Magellan Asset Management Ltd raised its stake in American States Water by 20.2% during the 1st quarter. Magellan Asset Management Ltd now owns 36,743 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $2,779,000 after acquiring an additional 6,172 shares during the period. Leith Wheeler Investment Counsel Ltd. raised its stake in American States Water by 60.8% during the 1st quarter. Leith Wheeler Investment Counsel Ltd. now owns 126,225 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $9,545,000 after acquiring an additional 47,725 shares during the period. Finally, Meeder Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in American States Water by 2,666.7% during the first quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,573 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $195,000 after purchasing an additional 2,480 shares in the last quarter. 75.24% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Paul J. Rowley sold 1,304 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.05, for a total transaction of $99,169.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 6,520 shares in the company, valued at $495,846. This trade represents a 16.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Anne M. Holloway sold 662 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.58, for a total value of $50,033.96. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 39,418 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,979,212.44. The trade was a 1.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.90% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

American States Water Trading Down 0.6%

Shares of AWR opened at $85.47 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 1.22 and a quick ratio of 1.13. American States Water Company has a 1 year low of $69.45 and a 1 year high of $90.11. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $81.62 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $77.42. The firm has a market cap of $3.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.33 and a beta of 0.59.

American States Water (NYSE:AWR - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.77 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $169.19 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $157.02 million. American States Water had a net margin of 19.66% and a return on equity of 13.06%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 14.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.70 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that American States Water Company will post 3.71 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American States Water Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 2nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 17th will be issued a dividend of $0.5455 per share. This is a boost from American States Water's previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 17th. This represents a $2.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.6%. American States Water's payout ratio is currently 58.89%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of American States Water from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research report on Thursday. Zacks Research downgraded shares of American States Water from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Finally, Freedom Capital upgraded shares of American States Water to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, June 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, American States Water presently has a consensus rating of "Hold".

American States Water Company Profile

American States Water Company NYSE: AWR, founded in 1929 and headquartered in San Dimas, California, is a publicly traded utility holding company. The company operates primarily through two regulated segments—water and electric utilities—and provides non-regulated water system services. Over its history, American States Water has expanded its footprint through strategic acquisitions and organic growth, positioning itself as a reliable provider of essential services in its core territories.

Within its regulated water utility segment, American States Water serves more than 250,000 residential, commercial and industrial customers across 35 communities in six counties of California.

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