2,040 Shares in American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK) Bought by Ground Swell Capital LLC

Key Points

• Ground Swell Capital LLC acquired a new stake in American Water Works, purchasing 2,040 shares valued at approximately $301,000.
• Several institutional investors have increased their holdings in American Water Works, with Pictet Asset Management boosting its stake by 24.1% and GAMMA Investing lifting it by an extraordinary 20,534% in the first quarter.
• American Water Works recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.8275 per share, reflecting a 2.3% yield and a payout ratio of 59.64%.

Ground Swell Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 2,040 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $301,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in AWK. Mariner LLC boosted its position in shares of American Water Works by 22.6% during the fourth quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 101,978 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $12,695,000 after buying an additional 18,770 shares during the period. CreativeOne Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in American Water Works in the fourth quarter worth approximately $259,000. Belpointe Asset Management LLC lifted its position in American Water Works by 19.6% in the fourth quarter. Belpointe Asset Management LLC now owns 7,667 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $954,000 after purchasing an additional 1,256 shares during the period. Guggenheim Capital LLC lifted its position in American Water Works by 5.9% in the fourth quarter. Guggenheim Capital LLC now owns 26,074 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $3,246,000 after purchasing an additional 1,459 shares during the period. Finally, Jump Financial LLC lifted its position in American Water Works by 5.0% in the fourth quarter. Jump Financial LLC now owns 8,358 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,040,000 after purchasing an additional 398 shares during the period. 86.58% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

American Water Works Stock Up 0.3%

Shares of AWK traded up $0.38 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $143.79. The company's stock had a trading volume of 923,760 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,674,240. The business has a fifty day moving average of $141.71 and a 200 day moving average of $140.52. The company has a market cap of $28.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.41 and a beta of 0.65. American Water Works Company, Inc. has a 1 year low of $118.74 and a 1 year high of $155.50. The company has a quick ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 0.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15.

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

American Water Works Announces Dividend

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

Insider Activity

In other news, CAO Melissa K. Wikle sold 2,825 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $143.28, for a total value of $404,766.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 7,572 shares in the company, valued at $1,084,916.16. This represents a 27.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.11% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have weighed in on AWK. Wall Street Zen downgraded American Water Works from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. Barclays cut their target price on American Water Works from $138.00 to $128.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. Evercore ISI upped their target price on American Water Works from $139.00 to $148.00 and gave the stock an "in-line" rating in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. UBS Group cut their target price on American Water Works from $156.00 to $151.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Mizuho increased their price objective on American Water Works from $148.00 to $149.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $143.30.

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.