Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD Boosts Stake in American Water Works Company, Inc. $AWK

Key Points

• Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD significantly increased its stake in American Water Works by 881.1%, acquiring an additional 3,327,352 shares, bringing its total ownership to 3,704,995 shares, valued at approximately $546.6 million.
• Several other institutional investors have also raised their stakes in American Water Works, contributing to a high institutional ownership level of 86.58% in the company.
• American Water Works recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.8275 per share, which translates to a 2.3% yield, with a payout ratio of 59.64%.

Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its stake in shares of American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK - Free Report) by 881.1% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,704,995 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 3,327,352 shares during the quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD owned about 1.90% of American Water Works worth $546,562,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. PFG Advisors grew its stake in shares of American Water Works by 33.4% during the 1st quarter. PFG Advisors now owns 9,699 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,431,000 after purchasing an additional 2,429 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its stake in shares of American Water Works by 2.1% during the 1st quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 124,352 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $18,344,000 after buying an additional 2,570 shares during the last quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. raised its stake in shares of American Water Works by 2.2% during the 1st quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. now owns 10,547 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,556,000 after buying an additional 229 shares during the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its stake in American Water Works by 45.2% in the 1st quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 2,326 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $342,000 after acquiring an additional 724 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. grew its stake in American Water Works by 21.5% in the 1st quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 7,692 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,135,000 after acquiring an additional 1,359 shares during the last quarter. 86.58% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CAO Melissa K. Wikle sold 2,825 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $143.28, for a total value of $404,766.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 7,572 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,084,916.16. This represents a 27.17% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.11% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. Wall Street Zen cut shares of American Water Works from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. Evercore ISI increased their price objective on shares of American Water Works from $139.00 to $148.00 and gave the company an "in-line" rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Mizuho increased their price objective on shares of American Water Works from $148.00 to $149.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of American Water Works from $147.00 to $141.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Finally, Argus increased their price objective on shares of American Water Works from $155.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 14th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, American Water Works presently has an average rating of "Reduce" and an average target price of $143.30.

American Water Works Trading Up 0.6%

American Water Works stock traded up $0.87 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $144.82. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,195,088 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,420,239. The stock has a market capitalization of $28.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.09, a P/E/G ratio of 3.42 and a beta of 0.65. The stock's fifty day moving average is $142.28 and its 200 day moving average is $141.53. American Water Works Company, Inc. has a 1-year low of $118.74 and a 1-year high of $155.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 0.32 and a current ratio of 0.35.

American Water Works (NYSE:AWK - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The utilities provider reported $1.48 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates 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 firm had revenue of $1.28 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.22 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.42 EPS. American Water Works'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. As a group, equities research analysts predict that American Water Works Company, Inc. will post 5.71 EPS for the current year.

American Water Works Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 3rd. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 12th will be issued a $0.8275 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, August 12th. This represents a $3.31 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.3%. American Water Works's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 59.64%.

American Water Works 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.