American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK) Shares Sold by Handelsbanken Fonder AB

Handelsbanken Fonder AB reduced its position in shares of American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK - Free Report) by 2.7% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 109,005 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 3,053 shares during the period. Handelsbanken Fonder AB owned about 0.06% of American Water Works worth $16,080,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Sovran Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of American Water Works during the 4th quarter worth about $277,000. M&T Bank Corp boosted its holdings in shares of American Water Works by 3.3% in the fourth quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 65,249 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $8,123,000 after acquiring an additional 2,113 shares during the period. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC bought a new position in shares of American Water Works in the fourth quarter worth $1,715,000. Bryn Mawr Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in American Water Works in the 4th quarter worth approximately $373,000. Finally, Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC boosted its stake in American Water Works by 9.8% in the fourth quarter. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC now owns 6,235 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $776,000 after buying an additional 557 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.58% of the company's stock.

American Water Works Stock Up 0.1%

Shares of AWK traded up $0.11 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $141.43. The company's stock had a trading volume of 335,838 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,451,036. The company's 50-day moving average is $143.46 and its 200-day moving average is $135.80. The company has a current ratio of 0.39, a quick ratio of 0.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21. American Water Works Company, Inc. has a 52-week low of $118.74 and a 52-week high of $155.50. The firm has a market capitalization of $27.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.25, a PEG ratio of 2.80 and a beta of 0.71.

American Water Works (NYSE:AWK - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The utilities provider reported $1.05 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.06 by ($0.01). American Water Works had a net margin of 22.44% and a return on equity of 10.29%. The company had revenue of $1.14 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.09 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.95 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 13.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts forecast that American Water Works Company, Inc. will post 5.71 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Water Works Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 3rd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 13th were issued a dividend of $0.8275 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, May 13th. This represents a $3.31 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.34%. This is an increase from American Water Works's previous quarterly dividend of $0.77. American Water Works's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 60.29%.

Insider Activity at American Water Works

In other news, CAO Melissa K. Wikle sold 2,825 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $143.28, for a total value of $404,766.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 7,572 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,084,916.16. This represents a 27.17% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.11% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on shares of American Water Works from $139.00 to $148.00 and gave the company an "in-line" rating in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. UBS Group cut shares of American Water Works from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, April 25th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of American Water Works from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of American Water Works from $142.00 to $147.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Barclays began coverage on American Water Works in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. They set an "underweight" rating and a $138.00 price objective on the stock. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, American Water Works presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $143.22.

American Water Works Profile

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.