Ieq Capital LLC Takes $8.40 Million Position in American States Water Company $AWR

Key Points

• Ieq Capital LLC acquired 101,674 shares of American States Water worth approximately $8.4 million, giving it a 0.26% stake. Institutional investors collectively own 75.24% of the company.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed: Weiss Ratings upgraded AWR to “buy,” while Freedom Capital assigned a “hold” rating and Zacks Research downgraded it to “hold”; the overall consensus is “Hold.”
• American States Water exceeded quarterly expectations with $1.09 in EPS and $181.29 million in revenue, while raising its quarterly dividend to $0.5455 per share, equivalent to a 2.5% annual yield.

Ieq Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of American States Water Company (NYSE:AWR - Free Report) during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 101,674 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $8,401,000. Ieq Capital LLC owned about 0.26% of American States Water at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of AWR. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in American States Water by 4.6% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 462,887 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $33,550,000 after purchasing an additional 20,510 shares during the last quarter. Fideuram Intesa Sanpaolo Private Banking S.P.A. purchased a new stake in shares of American States Water in the fourth quarter valued at about $2,379,000. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of American States Water by 2.4% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 4,975,947 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $360,657,000 after buying an additional 118,702 shares during the last quarter. Kennedy Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of American States Water by 41.1% during the fourth quarter. Kennedy Capital Management LLC now owns 189,387 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $13,727,000 after buying an additional 55,133 shares during the period. Finally, Leith Wheeler Investment Counsel Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of American States Water by 60.8% during the first quarter. Leith Wheeler Investment Counsel Ltd. now owns 126,225 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $9,545,000 after buying an additional 47,725 shares during the period. 75.24% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently issued reports on AWR. Weiss Ratings raised American States Water from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Freedom Capital raised American States Water to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, June 29th. Finally, Zacks Research cut American States Water from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 2nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, American States Water presently has an average rating of "Hold".

Insider Transactions at American States Water

In related news, Director Anne M. Holloway sold 900 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $88.86, for a total value of $79,974.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 38,518 shares in the company, valued at $3,422,709.48. This trade represents a 2.28% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.90% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

American States Water Stock Performance

NYSE:AWR opened at $88.90 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75, a current ratio of 0.98 and a quick ratio of 0.90. The firm has a market cap of $3.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.35 and a beta of 0.57. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $84.71 and its 200 day moving average price is $78.85. American States Water Company has a 1-year low of $69.45 and a 1-year high of $90.42.

American States Water (NYSE:AWR - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.09 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.93 by $0.16. The company had revenue of $181.29 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $171.72 million. American States Water had a net margin of 20.52% and a return on equity of 13.50%. American States Water's quarterly revenue was up 11.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.87 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that American States Water Company will post 3.68 EPS for the current year.

American States Water Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 2nd. Investors of record on Monday, August 17th will be issued a dividend of $0.5455 per share. This is an increase from American States Water's previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. This represents a $2.18 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 17th. American States Water's dividend payout ratio is currently 59.73%.

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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