Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. Acquires 5,948 Shares of Middlesex Water Company (NASDAQ:MSEX)

Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. increased its stake in shares of Middlesex Water Company (NASDAQ:MSEX - Free Report) by 29.9% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 25,811 shares of the utilities provider's stock after acquiring an additional 5,948 shares during the quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. owned about 0.14% of Middlesex Water worth $1,654,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Ellevest Inc. increased its stake in Middlesex Water by 3.8% in the 4th quarter. Ellevest Inc. now owns 6,395 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $337,000 after acquiring an additional 233 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can boosted its position in shares of Middlesex Water by 3.5% during the 4th quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 7,474 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $393,000 after acquiring an additional 250 shares during the last quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Middlesex Water by 771.9% in the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 497 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 440 shares in the last quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co increased its position in Middlesex Water by 2.2% in the fourth quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 20,614 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,081,000 after purchasing an additional 443 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its stake in Middlesex Water by 1,006.4% during the fourth quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 520 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 473 shares in the last quarter. 79.52% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Middlesex Water Trading Down 0.0%

MSEX stock traded down $0.02 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $54.51. 145,257 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 131,031. Middlesex Water Company has a one year low of $48.18 and a one year high of $70.73. The stock has a market capitalization of $976.82 million, a PE ratio of 22.62, a PEG ratio of 3.53 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78, a quick ratio of 0.39 and a current ratio of 0.46. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $58.28 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $56.62.

Middlesex Water (NASDAQ:MSEX - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The utilities provider reported $0.53 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.55 by ($0.02). Middlesex Water had a return on equity of 9.76% and a net margin of 22.05%. The firm had revenue of $44.30 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $43.79 million. Equities research analysts expect that Middlesex Water Company will post 2.34 EPS for the current year.

Middlesex Water Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 2nd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 15th were paid a dividend of $0.34 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 15th. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.49%. Middlesex Water's dividend payout ratio is 56.43%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have commented on MSEX shares. Janney Montgomery Scott raised shares of Middlesex Water from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $66.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Monday, May 12th. Wall Street Zen lowered Middlesex Water from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. Baird R W upgraded Middlesex Water from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. Finally, Robert W. Baird raised Middlesex Water from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $61.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Middlesex Water currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $61.00.

Middlesex Water Profile

Middlesex Water Company owns and operates regulated water utility and wastewater systems. It operates in Regulated and Non-Regulated segments. The Regulated segment collects, treats, and distributes water on a retail and wholesale basis to residential, commercial, industrial, and fire protection customers, as well as provides regulated wastewater systems in New Jersey and Delaware.