Public Sector Pension Investment Board Increases Position in Middlesex Water Company $MSEX

Key Points

• The Public Sector Pension Investment Board increased its stake in Middlesex Water Company by 26.9%, owning 56,620 shares valued at approximately $3.63 million as of the end of the last quarter.
• Middlesex Water missed earnings expectations, reporting $0.60 per share against a consensus estimate of $0.68, with revenue of $49.32 million compared to predictions of $52.60 million.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.34 per share, yielding 2.6%, with a payment date set for September 2nd.

Public Sector Pension Investment Board lifted its position in Middlesex Water Company (NASDAQ:MSEX - Free Report) by 26.9% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 56,620 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 11,996 shares during the quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board owned about 0.32% of Middlesex Water worth $3,629,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Middlesex Water by 9.4% in the fourth quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,471,404 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $77,440,000 after purchasing an additional 126,732 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Middlesex Water by 1.5% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,412,377 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $90,533,000 after purchasing an additional 20,876 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Middlesex Water by 18.8% in the first quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 303,463 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $19,452,000 after purchasing an additional 48,072 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp increased its holdings in shares of Middlesex Water by 11.6% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 223,361 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $11,755,000 after purchasing an additional 23,289 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in shares of Middlesex Water by 6,702.0% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 139,033 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $8,912,000 after purchasing an additional 136,989 shares during the last quarter. 79.52% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on MSEX. Janney Montgomery Scott raised Middlesex Water from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $66.00 target price on the stock in a report on Monday, May 12th. Wall Street Zen cut Middlesex Water from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Middlesex Water presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $61.00.

Middlesex Water Trading Up 3.3%

NASDAQ MSEX traded up $1.75 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $54.56. 179,384 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 145,572. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $54.14 and a 200 day moving average price of $56.95. The company has a quick ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 0.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. Middlesex Water Company has a 52 week low of $48.18 and a 52 week high of $70.73. The stock has a market cap of $983.01 million, a PE ratio of 22.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.67 and a beta of 0.81.

Middlesex Water (NASDAQ:MSEX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 31st. The utilities provider reported $0.60 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.68 by ($0.08). Middlesex Water had a return on equity of 9.67% and a net margin of 22.15%.The company had revenue of $49.32 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $52.60 million. Analysts forecast that Middlesex Water Company will post 2.34 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Middlesex Water Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 15th will be given a dividend of $0.34 per share. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 15th. Middlesex Water's payout ratio is 56.20%.

Middlesex Water Company 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.