Erste Asset Management GmbH Raises Stake in American Water Works Company, Inc. $AWK

Key Points

• Erste Asset Management GmbH increased its stake in American Water Works by 25.9% in the fourth quarter, buying 14,363 more shares and bringing its total holding to 69,893 shares worth about $9.14 million.
• Institutional ownership remains heavy, with 86.58% of American Water Works shares held by hedge funds and other institutional investors. Several smaller funds also added positions in the utility during the quarter.
• Analysts are mostly cautious on the stock: the consensus rating is Hold with a consensus price target of $138.11, while the shares were trading around $122.53 after a 1.6% decline.

Erste Asset Management GmbH boosted its holdings in shares of American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK - Free Report) by 25.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 69,893 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 14,363 shares during the period. Erste Asset Management GmbH's holdings in American Water Works were worth $9,142,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Salomon & Ludwin LLC lifted its holdings in American Water Works by 71.7% in the fourth quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 194 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 81 shares during the period. Nemes Rush Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of American Water Works during the 4th quarter worth $27,000. Midwest Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in American Water Works in the 4th quarter valued at about $39,000. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp raised its stake in American Water Works by 803.1% in the 3rd quarter. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp now owns 289 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 257 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Elevation Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in American Water Works in the 4th quarter valued at about $40,000. 86.58% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have commented on AWK shares. Bank of America lowered their price target on American Water Works from $147.00 to $134.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 21st. Truist Financial reduced their price target on American Water Works from $137.00 to $130.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 29th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $131.00 price target on American Water Works in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c)" rating on shares of American Water Works in a research report on Friday, March 27th. Finally, Barclays upped their price target on American Water Works from $122.00 to $124.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $138.11.

American Water Works Trading Down 1.6%

NYSE:AWK opened at $122.53 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.34, a current ratio of 0.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16. American Water Works Company, Inc. has a 1-year low of $120.57 and a 1-year high of $147.87. The firm has a market capitalization of $23.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.62. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $129.43 and a 200 day simple moving average of $130.77.

American Water Works (NYSE:AWK - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The utilities provider reported $1.01 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.10 by ($0.09). The business had revenue of $1.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.17 billion. American Water Works had a return on equity of 10.20% and a net margin of 21.17%.The firm's revenue was up 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.05 earnings per share. American Water Works has set its FY 2026 guidance at 6.020-6.120 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that American Water Works Company, Inc. will post 6.09 earnings per share for the current year.

American Water Works Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 2nd. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 12th were paid a $0.895 dividend. This represents a $3.58 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, May 12th. This is a positive change from American Water Works's previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. American Water Works's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 63.48%.

American Water Works Company Profile

American Water Works Company, Inc NYSE: AWK is a publicly traded utility company that provides water and wastewater services in the United States. Its core business is the operation, management and maintenance of regulated water and wastewater systems that deliver potable water, collect and treat wastewater, and provide related customer services to residential, commercial and industrial customers as well as municipalities. The company's operations include water treatment and distribution, wastewater collection and treatment, meter reading and billing, emergency repairs, and long-term infrastructure planning and capital project execution.

In addition to its regulated utility operations, American Water offers complementary nonregulated services and solutions that support system reliability and customer needs.

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