Hsbc Holdings PLC Sells 15,282 Shares of American States Water Company $AWR

Key Points

• HSBC Holdings cut its American States Water stake by 66.2%, selling 15,282 shares and retaining 7,788 shares valued at approximately $593,000. Institutional investors collectively own 75.24% of AWR.
• American States Water reported 14.3% year-over-year revenue growth to $169.19 million, though quarterly EPS of $0.76 narrowly missed estimates. The company raised its quarterly dividend to $0.5455 per share, implying a 2.6% yield.
• AWR shares opened at $85.47, near their 52-week high, while analyst sentiment remained cautious with a consensus rating of “Hold” from one Buy and two Hold ratings.

Hsbc Holdings PLC reduced its holdings in American States Water Company (NYSE:AWR - Free Report) by 66.2% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 7,788 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 15,282 shares during the period. Hsbc Holdings PLC's holdings in American States Water were worth $593,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in American States Water by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 4,975,947 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $360,657,000 after acquiring an additional 118,702 shares during the last quarter. Morgan Stanley increased its position in shares of American States Water by 128.8% during the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 1,347,240 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $97,648,000 after purchasing an additional 758,452 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of American States Water by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 907,840 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $65,810,000 after purchasing an additional 2,812 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in American States Water by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 739,848 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $53,625,000 after buying an additional 5,898 shares during the period. Finally, Pictet Asset Management Holding SA lifted its position in American States Water by 28.7% in the fourth quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 738,039 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $53,495,000 after buying an additional 164,559 shares during the last quarter. 75.24% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

American States Water Trading Down 0.6%

AWR opened at $85.47 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a current ratio of 1.22. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $81.62 and its 200-day moving average price is $77.42. American States Water Company has a one year low of $69.45 and a one year high of $90.11. The stock has a market cap of $3.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.92, a P/E/G ratio of 3.34 and a beta of 0.59.

American States Water (NYSE:AWR - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.77 by ($0.01). American States Water had a return on equity of 13.06% and a net margin of 19.66%.The business had revenue of $169.19 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $157.02 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.70 earnings per share. American States Water's revenue was up 14.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that American States Water Company will post 3.71 EPS for the current year.

American States Water Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 2nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 17th will be given a dividend of $0.5455 per share. This represents a $2.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.6%. This is a positive change from American States Water's previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 17th. American States Water's dividend payout ratio is 63.56%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have commented on AWR shares. Weiss Ratings raised shares of American States Water from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research note on Thursday. Freedom Capital raised shares of American States Water to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, June 29th. Finally, Zacks Research lowered shares of American States Water from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 2nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold".

Insider Buying and Selling at American States Water

In other news, Director Anne M. Holloway sold 662 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.58, for a total transaction of $50,033.96. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 39,418 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,979,212.44. The trade was a 1.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Paul J. Rowley sold 1,304 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.05, for a total transaction of $99,169.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 6,520 shares in the company, valued at approximately $495,846. The trade was a 16.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.90% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

American States Water Profile

American States Water Company NYSE: AWR, founded in 1929 and headquartered in San Dimas, California, is a publicly traded utility holding company. The company operates primarily through two regulated segments—water and electric utilities—and provides non-regulated water system services. Over its history, American States Water has expanded its footprint through strategic acquisitions and organic growth, positioning itself as a reliable provider of essential services in its core territories.

Within its regulated water utility segment, American States Water serves more than 250,000 residential, commercial and industrial customers across 35 communities in six counties of California.

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