UBS Group AG Has $10.20 Million Stock Position in American States Water Company $AWR

Key Points

• UBS Group AG reduced its stake in American States Water by 12.2% in the fourth quarter, selling 19,591 shares and leaving it with 140,669 shares worth about $10.2 million.
• American States Water reported mixed quarterly results: EPS of $0.76 slightly missed estimates, while revenue of $169.19 million beat expectations and rose 14.3% year over year.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.504 per share, payable June 2, implying an annualized dividend of $2.02 and a yield of 2.7%.

UBS Group AG trimmed its stake in shares of American States Water Company (NYSE:AWR - Free Report) by 12.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 140,669 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 19,591 shares during the quarter. UBS Group AG owned 0.36% of American States Water worth $10,196,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of AWR. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of American States Water by 55.9% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 720,766 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $52,847,000 after acquiring an additional 258,388 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its stake in shares of American States Water by 512.8% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 187,949 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $13,780,000 after acquiring an additional 157,276 shares during the last quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank raised its stake in shares of American States Water by 632.9% in the fourth quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 153,931 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $11,157,000 after acquiring an additional 132,929 shares during the last quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd raised its stake in shares of American States Water by 238.3% in the third quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 174,361 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $12,784,000 after acquiring an additional 122,823 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of American States Water by 2.4% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 4,975,947 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $360,657,000 after acquiring an additional 118,702 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 75.24% of the company's stock.

American States Water Stock Performance

AWR stock opened at $75.73 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 1.22 and a quick ratio of 1.13. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $76.22 and a 200 day moving average price of $74.44. American States Water Company has a fifty-two week low of $69.45 and a fifty-two week high of $81.24. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.97 billion, a PE ratio of 22.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 0.60.

American States Water (NYSE:AWR - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.76 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.77 by ($0.01). American States Water had a return on equity of 13.06% and a net margin of 19.66%.The company had revenue of $169.19 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $157.02 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.70 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 14.3% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that American States Water Company will post 3.71 EPS for the current year.

American States Water Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 2nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 18th will be issued a dividend of $0.504 per share. This represents a $2.02 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 18th. American States Water's payout ratio is currently 58.89%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other American States Water news, SVP Paul J. Rowley sold 1,304 shares of American States Water stock in a transaction on Friday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $76.05, for a total transaction of $99,169.20. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 6,520 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $495,846. The trade was a 16.67% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.90% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on AWR. Zacks Research upgraded shares of American States Water from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of American States Water in a research note on Monday, April 20th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, American States Water has an average rating of "Buy".

American States Water Profile

American States Water Company NYSE: AWR, founded in 1929 and headquartered in San Dimas, California, is a publicly traded utility holding company. The company operates primarily through two regulated segments—water and electric utilities—and provides non-regulated water system services. Over its history, American States Water has expanded its footprint through strategic acquisitions and organic growth, positioning itself as a reliable provider of essential services in its core territories.

Within its regulated water utility segment, American States Water serves more than 250,000 residential, commercial and industrial customers across 35 communities in six counties of California.

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