Nuance Investments LLC Purchases Shares of 154,446 H2O America $HTO

Key Points

• Nuance Investments purchased 154,446 H2O America shares worth approximately $9.4 million, giving it a 0.37% stake; institutional investors collectively own 84.29% of the company.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive outlook, with five Buy and four Hold ratings, an average “Moderate Buy” recommendation, and a consensus price target of $65.67.
• H2O America exceeded quarterly earnings expectations with $0.72 EPS versus $0.70 forecast and announced a $0.44 quarterly dividend, equivalent to a 2.8% annualized yield.

Nuance Investments LLC bought a new stake in H2O America (NASDAQ:HTO - Free Report) in the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 154,446 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $9,386,000. H2O America makes up approximately 1.6% of Nuance Investments LLC's holdings, making the stock its 18th largest holding. Nuance Investments LLC owned approximately 0.37% of H2O America at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Quadrant Capital Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of H2O America by 194.9% in the 4th quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 525 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 347 shares during the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in H2O America by 1,020.8% during the fourth quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 594 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 541 shares during the period. Bessemer Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of H2O America by 44.6% during the 1st quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 661 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 204 shares during the period. Farther Finance Advisors LLC bought a new stake in H2O America in the fourth quarter worth about $40,000. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in H2O America by 76.2% in the first quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 911 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $53,000 after purchasing an additional 394 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.29% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, major shareholder Atlas Infrastructure Partners bought 2,784 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 7th. The shares were bought at an average price of $62.03 per share, for a total transaction of $172,691.52. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider owned 4,615,265 shares of the company's stock, valued at $286,284,887.95. This trade represents a 0.06% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.52% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Seaport Research Partners reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $67.00 price objective on shares of H2O America in a report on Wednesday, August 12th. Wells Fargo & Company began coverage on H2O America in a research report on Monday, May 11th. They set an "equal weight" rating and a $60.00 target price for the company. Weiss Ratings reissued a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of H2O America in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Barclays increased their price objective on H2O America from $60.00 to $67.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of H2O America from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, June 22nd. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $65.67.

H2O America Price Performance

HTO opened at $63.21 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.67, a quick ratio of 1.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $61.21 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $58.30. The company has a market cap of $2.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 7.36 and a beta of 0.34. H2O America has a 12-month low of $43.75 and a 12-month high of $67.09.

H2O America (NASDAQ:HTO - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 27th. The utilities provider reported $0.72 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.70 by $0.02. H2O America had a return on equity of 6.65% and a net margin of 12.91%.The firm had revenue of $210.47 million for the quarter. H2O America has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.080-3.180 EPS. Research analysts predict that H2O America will post 2.8 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

H2O America Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 10th will be given a $0.44 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 10th. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.8%. H2O America's payout ratio is 62.19%.

H2O America Profile

SJW Group, through its subsidiaries, provides water utility and other related services in the United States. It operates in Water Utility Services and Real Estate Services segments. The company engages in the production, purchase, storage, purification, distribution, wholesale, and retail sale of water and wastewater services; and supplies groundwater from wells, surface water from watershed run-off and diversion, reclaimed water, and imported water purchased from the Santa Clara Valley Water District.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding HTO? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for H2O America (NASDAQ:HTO - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.

Continue following MarketBeat

Add MarketBeat as your preferred source on Google to see our latest stories in your feed.

Add As Preferred Source