GAMMA Investing LLC Acquires 65,945 Shares of American States Water (NYSE:AWR)

GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in American States Water (NYSE:AWR - Free Report) by 3,834.0% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 67,665 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 65,945 shares during the quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC owned about 0.18% of American States Water worth $5,324,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of AWR. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio purchased a new stake in American States Water in the 4th quarter worth $26,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in American States Water in the 4th quarter worth $30,000. Federated Hermes Inc. raised its position in shares of American States Water by 92.5% during the 4th quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 439 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 211 shares in the last quarter. Plato Investment Management Ltd raised its position in shares of American States Water by 2,173.9% during the 4th quarter. Plato Investment Management Ltd now owns 523 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 500 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. raised its position in shares of American States Water by 367.3% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 500 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 393 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.24% of the company's stock.

American States Water Price Performance

Shares of NYSE AWR traded down $0.48 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $78.10. 159,800 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 216,412. The company has a market capitalization of $3.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.64, a PEG ratio of 12.92 and a beta of 0.62. American States Water has a 1 year low of $69.49 and a 1 year high of $87.50. The company's 50-day moving average is $78.58 and its two-hundred day moving average is $77.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.76.

American States Water (NYSE:AWR - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The utilities provider reported $0.70 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.70. The company had revenue of $148.01 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $142.00 million. American States Water had a net margin of 20.03% and a return on equity of 13.63%. The firm's revenue was up 9.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.62 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that American States Water will post 3.34 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American States Water Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 3rd. Investors of record on Monday, May 19th were issued a dividend of $0.4655 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 19th. This represents a $1.86 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.38%. American States Water's payout ratio is 57.23%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AWR has been the topic of several recent research reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of American States Water from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, March 8th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of American States Water from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and upped their target price for the company from $76.00 to $84.00 in a research report on Thursday, May 8th.

Insider Activity at American States Water

In related news, Director Thomas A. Eichelberger bought 897 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, June 6th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $76.81 per share, for a total transaction of $68,898.57. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 8,467 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $650,350.27. The trade was a 11.85% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.83% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

American States Water Company Profile

American States Water Company, through its subsidiaries, provides water and electric services to residential, commercial, industrial, and other customers in the United States. It operates through three segments: Water, Electric, and Contracted Services. The company purchases, produces, distributes, and sells water, as well as distributes electricity.