Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. Sells 4,669 Shares of American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK)

Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. lessened its position in shares of American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK - Free Report) by 8.3% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 51,674 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 4,669 shares during the quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V.'s holdings in American Water Works were worth $7,623,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its holdings in American Water Works by 2.1% in the 1st quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 124,352 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $18,344,000 after buying an additional 2,570 shares during the period. M&T Bank Corp boosted its position in shares of American Water Works by 3.3% during the 4th quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 65,249 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $8,123,000 after acquiring an additional 2,113 shares in the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its stake in American Water Works by 45.2% in the first 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 period. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. raised its position in American Water Works by 21.5% in the first quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 7,692 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,135,000 after purchasing an additional 1,359 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in American Water Works by 4.1% during the first quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 40,625 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $5,993,000 after purchasing an additional 1,588 shares during the period. 86.58% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently weighed in on AWK. UBS Group lowered American Water Works from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on American Water Works from $142.00 to $147.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on American Water Works from $139.00 to $148.00 and gave the company an "in-line" rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Barclays began coverage on shares of American Water Works in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. They issued an "underweight" rating and a $138.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut shares of American Water Works from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, American Water Works currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $143.22.

Insider Activity at American Water Works

In other news, CAO Melissa K. Wikle sold 2,825 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $143.28, for a total transaction of $404,766.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 7,572 shares in the company, valued at $1,084,916.16. The trade was a 27.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Company insiders own 0.11% of the company's stock.

American Water Works Price Performance

Shares of American Water Works stock traded down $1.34 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $141.22. The company's stock had a trading volume of 389,283 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,226,693. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $142.37 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $136.48. The stock has a market capitalization of $27.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.70, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.29 and a beta of 0.69. The company has a current ratio of 0.49, a quick ratio of 0.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26. American Water Works Company, Inc. has a one year low of $118.74 and a one year high of $155.50.

American Water Works (NYSE:AWK - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The utilities provider reported $1.05 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.06 by ($0.01). American Water Works had a return on equity of 10.35% and a net margin of 22.24%. The company had revenue of $1.14 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.09 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.95 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 13.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that American Water Works Company, Inc. will post 5.71 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Water Works Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 3rd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 13th were given a $0.8275 dividend. This represents a $3.31 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.34%. This is a positive change from American Water Works's previous quarterly dividend of $0.77. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, May 13th. American Water Works's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 60.29%.

About American Water Works

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.