Royce & Associates LP Cuts Holdings in Global Water Resources, Inc. (NASDAQ:GWRS)

Key Points

• Royce & Associates LP has significantly reduced its stake in Global Water Resources, selling 75,956 shares, which lowered its holdings by 71.7% to 30,044 shares valued at $310,000.
• Other institutional investors, including North Star Investment Management Corp and Wesbanco Bank Inc, have increased their stakes in Global Water Resources, demonstrating a mixed sentiment among large shareholders.
• Global Water Resources is set to pay a $0.0253 monthly dividend on July 31st, offering investors a 3.10% yield, despite having a high payout ratio of 130.43%.

Royce & Associates LP decreased its holdings in Global Water Resources, Inc. (NASDAQ:GWRS - Free Report) by 71.7% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 30,044 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 75,956 shares during the quarter. Royce & Associates LP owned about 0.11% of Global Water Resources worth $310,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in GWRS. Wells Fargo & Company MN raised its holdings in shares of Global Water Resources by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 211,216 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $2,429,000 after buying an additional 1,130 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Global Water Resources by 7.0% in the fourth quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 20,210 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $232,000 after buying an additional 1,327 shares during the last quarter. Barclays PLC raised its holdings in shares of Global Water Resources by 5.3% in the fourth quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 33,347 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $384,000 after buying an additional 1,684 shares during the last quarter. Rhumbline Advisers raised its holdings in shares of Global Water Resources by 12.0% in the first quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 17,595 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $181,000 after buying an additional 1,884 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp raised its holdings in shares of Global Water Resources by 6.0% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 96,579 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,111,000 after buying an additional 5,480 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 27.91% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Global Water Resources from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, May 22nd.

Global Water Resources Stock Performance

Shares of Global Water Resources stock traded down $0.12 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $9.69. 57,726 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 55,583. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.54, a quick ratio of 1.55 and a current ratio of 1.55. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $10.31 and a 200-day simple moving average of $10.70. Global Water Resources, Inc. has a 52-week low of $9.37 and a 52-week high of $13.98. The stock has a market capitalization of $265.99 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.13, a PEG ratio of 3.04 and a beta of 1.03.

Global Water Resources (NASDAQ:GWRS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 14th. The utilities provider reported $0.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.02. The business had revenue of $12.46 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $12.00 million. Global Water Resources had a return on equity of 11.27% and a net margin of 10.63%. On average, research analysts forecast that Global Water Resources, Inc. will post 0.28 EPS for the current year.

Global Water Resources Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 31st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 17th will be issued a $0.0253 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 17th. This represents a $0.30 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.14%. Global Water Resources's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 130.43%.

Global Water Resources Company Profile

Global Water Resources, Inc, a water resource management company, owns, operates, and manages regulated water, wastewater, and recycled water systems primarily in metropolitan Phoenix and Tucson, Arizona. It serves approximately 82,000 people in approximately 32,000 homes. The company was founded in 2003 and is based in Phoenix, Arizona.