J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG Reduces Stock Holdings in American Water Works Company, Inc. $AWK

Key Points

• J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG reduced its stake in American Water Works by 24.3%, holding 31,873 shares valued at $4.43 million after selling 10,253 shares in the second quarter.
• American Water Works reported $1.48 earnings per share for the last quarter, missing estimates by $0.05, while their revenue increased by 11.1% year-over-year.
• Vanguard Group Inc. and several other institutional investors increased their holdings, contributing to 86.58% of the company's total shares owned by institutions and hedge funds.

J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG cut its holdings in American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK - Free Report) by 24.3% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 31,873 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 10,253 shares during the quarter. J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG's holdings in American Water Works were worth $4,434,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of American Water Works by 0.6% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 25,248,263 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $3,724,624,000 after acquiring an additional 141,038 shares in the last quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA boosted its stake in American Water Works by 24.1% in the 1st quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 4,532,131 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $668,566,000 after purchasing an additional 878,951 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its position in American Water Works by 881.1% during the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 3,704,995 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $546,562,000 after purchasing an additional 3,327,352 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp increased its stake in American Water Works by 3.6% during the 1st quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 3,479,406 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $513,282,000 after purchasing an additional 121,680 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its stake in American Water Works by 16.1% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 2,134,358 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $314,861,000 after purchasing an additional 295,928 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.58% of the company's stock.

American Water Works Stock Performance

Shares of AWK stock opened at $135.54 on Friday. American Water Works Company, Inc. has a 52-week low of $118.74 and a 52-week 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. The stock has a market cap of $26.44 billion, a PE ratio of 24.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.22 and a beta of 0.70. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $140.90 and a 200-day simple moving average of $142.19.

American Water Works (NYSE:AWK - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The utilities provider reported $1.48 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.53 by ($0.05). American Water Works had a net margin of 21.91% and a return on equity of 10.34%. The company had revenue of $1.28 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.22 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.42 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 11.1% compared to the same quarter last year. American Water Works has set its FY 2025 guidance at 5.700-5.750 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that American Water Works Company, Inc. will post 5.71 EPS for the current year.

American Water Works Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 3rd. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 12th were issued a dividend of $0.8275 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, August 12th. This represents a $3.31 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.4%. American Water Works's dividend payout ratio is 59.64%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on AWK shares. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of American Water Works from $138.00 to $128.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. Argus raised their target price on American Water Works from $155.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 14th. Mizuho lifted their price target on American Water Works from $148.00 to $149.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on American Water Works from $147.00 to $141.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 1st. Finally, UBS Group reduced their price objective on American Water Works from $156.00 to $151.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, August 12th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, American Water Works has an average rating of "Reduce" and a consensus price target of $141.13.

American Water Works Company 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.

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