Trexquant Investment LP Acquires 45,161 Shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp. $AQN

Key Points

• Trexquant Investment LP increased its stake in Algonquin Power & Utilities by 11.9%, acquiring an additional 45,161 shares, bringing its total to 425,816 shares valued at approximately $2.19 million.
• Several other institutional investors, including Callodine Capital Management LP and Gamco Investors INC., have also boosted their positions in Algonquin, indicating strong institutional interest with 62.28% of the company's stock held by institutional investors.
• Algonquin Power & Utilities announced a quarterly dividend of $0.065 per share, with a dividend yield of 4.6%, reflecting its commitment to return value to shareholders despite recent performance challenges.

Trexquant Investment LP increased its holdings in Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp. (NYSE:AQN - Free Report) by 11.9% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 425,816 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 45,161 shares during the period. Trexquant Investment LP owned 0.06% of Algonquin Power & Utilities worth $2,189,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AQN. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Algonquin Power & Utilities by 32.8% in the 4th quarter. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. now owns 22,830,789 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $101,202,000 after purchasing an additional 5,640,705 shares in the last quarter. Packer & Co Ltd purchased a new position in Algonquin Power & Utilities in the 1st quarter worth approximately $23,197,000. Starboard Value LP lifted its holdings in Algonquin Power & Utilities by 5.1% in the 4th quarter. Starboard Value LP now owns 65,316,000 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $290,656,000 after purchasing an additional 3,175,000 shares in the last quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP lifted its holdings in Algonquin Power & Utilities by 2,961.1% in the 4th quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 2,718,300 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $12,096,000 after purchasing an additional 2,629,500 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nuveen LLC purchased a new position in Algonquin Power & Utilities in the 1st quarter worth approximately $13,293,000. 62.28% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AQN has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. National Bankshares cut Algonquin Power & Utilities from an "outperform" rating to a "sector perform" rating and set a $6.75 price target on the stock. in a report on Wednesday, June 4th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Algonquin Power & Utilities from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 16th. CIBC lifted their price objective on Algonquin Power & Utilities from $5.75 to $6.25 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 4th. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price objective on Algonquin Power & Utilities from $6.00 to $6.50 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 4th. Finally, TD Securities raised Algonquin Power & Utilities to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, August 11th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $6.34.

Algonquin Power & Utilities Trading Down 0.4%

Shares of NYSE AQN traded down $0.02 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $5.59. 1,988,466 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,156,913. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -3.10 and a beta of 0.69. The company has a current ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22. The company's 50 day moving average price is $5.83 and its 200 day moving average price is $5.51. Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp. has a 12 month low of $4.19 and a 12 month high of $6.24.

Algonquin Power & Utilities (NYSE:AQN - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Friday, August 8th. The utilities provider reported $0.04 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.04. The firm had revenue of $535.59 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $535.64 million. Algonquin Power & Utilities had a positive return on equity of 4.76% and a negative net margin of 57.66%.During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.09 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp. will post 0.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Algonquin Power & Utilities Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 30th will be given a dividend of $0.065 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 29th. This represents a $0.26 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.7%. Algonquin Power & Utilities's payout ratio is currently -14.44%.

Algonquin Power & Utilities Company Profile

Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp. is an investment holding company, which engages in energy generation and water distribution facilities. It operates through the Regulated Services Group and Renewable Energy Group segments. The Regulated Services Group segment owns and operates a portfolio of electric, natural gas, water distribution, and wastewater collection utility systems and transmission.