Seizert Capital Partners LLC Purchases New Position in Consolidated Water Co. Ltd. (NASDAQ:CWCO)

Key Points

• Seizert Capital Partners LLC has purchased 150,556 shares of Consolidated Water Co. Ltd. for approximately $3,687,000, increasing its stake to 0.95% according to its latest SEC filing.
• Consolidated Water announced an increase in its quarterly dividend to $0.14, with a yield of 1.88%, up from the previous $0.11 dividend.
• Wall Street analysts upgraded Consolidated Water's rating from "sell" to "hold", reflecting a more positive outlook for the stock.

Seizert Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in Consolidated Water Co. Ltd. (NASDAQ:CWCO - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund purchased 150,556 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $3,687,000. Seizert Capital Partners LLC owned approximately 0.95% of Consolidated Water at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. CWM LLC increased its position in shares of Consolidated Water by 228.6% during the 1st quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,860 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 1,294 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in Consolidated Water by 2,247.9% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,841 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $70,000 after acquiring an additional 2,720 shares during the last quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP grew its position in Consolidated Water by 1,538.3% in the 4th quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 3,981 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $103,000 after acquiring an additional 3,738 shares during the last quarter. State of Tennessee Department of Treasury bought a new position in Consolidated Water in the 4th quarter valued at $149,000. Finally, Russell Investments Group Ltd. grew its position in Consolidated Water by 13.0% in the 4th quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 6,905 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $179,000 after acquiring an additional 794 shares during the last quarter. 55.16% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, Wall Street Zen raised Consolidated Water from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd.

Consolidated Water Trading Down 2.3%

Shares of CWCO traded down $0.66 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $28.43. 78,707 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 94,814. The company has a market capitalization of $452.52 million, a P/E ratio of 17.55 and a beta of 0.47. Consolidated Water Co. Ltd. has a 52 week low of $22.69 and a 52 week high of $31.30. The company's 50 day moving average is $29.14 and its two-hundred day moving average is $26.87.

Consolidated Water (NASDAQ:CWCO - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 12th. The utilities provider reported $0.31 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.22 by $0.09. Consolidated Water had a return on equity of 7.43% and a net margin of 20.75%. The company had revenue of $33.72 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $32.30 million. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Consolidated Water Co. Ltd. will post 1.27 EPS for the current year.

Consolidated Water Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, July 1st were paid a $0.14 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, July 1st. This is a positive change from Consolidated Water's previous quarterly dividend of $0.11. This represents a $0.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.0%. Consolidated Water's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 34.57%.

Consolidated Water Company Profile

Consolidated Water Co Ltd., together with its subsidiaries, designs, constructs, manages, and operates water production and water treatment plants primarily in the Cayman Islands, the Bahamas, and the United States. The company operates through four segments: Retail, Bulk, Services, and Manufacturing.