Heartland Advisors Inc. Grows Stake in Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp. $AQN

Key Points

• Heartland Advisors Inc. sharply increased its stake in Algonquin Power & Utilities by 178.4% in the first quarter, buying an additional 892,030 shares to bring its total to 1,392,030 shares worth about $8.55 million.
• Algonquin Power & Utilities reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings of $0.13 per share, topping analyst estimates of $0.11, while revenue came in line at $713.69 million.
• The company also paid a quarterly dividend of $0.065 per share, equal to a 4.5% annualized yield, though the payout ratio is high at 118.18%.

Heartland Advisors Inc. boosted its position in shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp. (NYSE:AQN - Free Report) by 178.4% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,392,030 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 892,030 shares during the quarter. Heartland Advisors Inc. owned approximately 0.18% of Algonquin Power & Utilities worth $8,547,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. increased its holdings in Algonquin Power & Utilities by 32.6% during the 4th quarter. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. now owns 81,727,385 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $502,563,000 after acquiring an additional 20,074,709 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities during the 4th quarter worth approximately $74,263,000. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities during the 4th quarter worth approximately $67,065,000. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its stake in Algonquin Power & Utilities by 65.0% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 12,205,756 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $62,738,000 after buying an additional 4,808,539 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Citadel Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Algonquin Power & Utilities by 14,166.9% in the 3rd quarter. Citadel Advisors LLC now owns 4,445,126 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $23,870,000 after buying an additional 4,476,726 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.28% of the company's stock.

Algonquin Power & Utilities Trading Down 0.6%

Shares of AQN opened at $5.83 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $5.85 and a two-hundred day moving average of $6.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a current ratio of 1.05. The company has a market capitalization of $4.49 billion, a PE ratio of 26.52 and a beta of 0.71. Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp. has a fifty-two week low of $5.32 and a fifty-two week high of $7.11.

Algonquin Power & Utilities (NYSE:AQN - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, May 8th. The utilities provider reported $0.13 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.11 by $0.02. Algonquin Power & Utilities had a return on equity of 5.21% and a net margin of 6.62%.The company had revenue of $713.69 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $713.69 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.14 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp. will post 0.36 EPS for the current year.

Algonquin Power & Utilities Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 30th were given a dividend of $0.065 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, June 30th. This represents a $0.26 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.5%. Algonquin Power & Utilities's dividend payout ratio is 118.18%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AQN has been the subject of several recent research reports. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce raised their price target on Algonquin Power & Utilities from $6.25 to $6.50 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Algonquin Power & Utilities from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Barclays initiated coverage on Algonquin Power & Utilities in a research report on Wednesday, April 1st. They set an "overweight" rating and a $7.00 price objective for the company. National Bank Financial cut their target price on shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities from $7.25 to $7.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, July 3rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company initiated coverage on shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities in a report on Tuesday, May 12th. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $7.00 target price on the stock. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $6.81.

Algonquin Power & Utilities Company Profile

Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp NYSE: AQN is a diversified generation, transmission and distribution utility company headquartered in Oakville, Ontario. Established in 1988, the firm operates through two primary business segments: Regulated Utilities and Renewable Energy. Its Regulated Utilities segment comprises electric, natural gas and water distribution networks serving residential, commercial and industrial customers across North America, while its Renewable Energy portfolio includes hydroelectric, solar, wind and thermal generation facilities.

The company's renewable energy assets span multiple jurisdictions in Canada and the United States, reflecting its strategy to expand clean power capacity in regions with supportive regulatory frameworks.

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