Wells Fargo & Company Cuts American Water Works (NYSE:AWK) Price Target to $141.00

Key Points

• Wells Fargo & Company has lowered its target price for American Water Works from $147.00 to $141.00, indicating a potential downside of 2.25% from the current price.
• The stock received mixed ratings from various analysts, with four giving a sell rating and one a buy rating, resulting in a consensus rating of "Hold."
• American Water Works reported a net margin of 21.91% for the latest quarter, despite missing earnings estimates by $0.05 per share.

American Water Works (NYSE:AWK - Get Free Report) had its price objective cut by investment analysts at Wells Fargo & Company from $147.00 to $141.00 in a report issued on Friday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an "equal weight" rating on the utilities provider's stock. Wells Fargo & Company's price objective indicates a potential downside of 0.34% from the stock's previous close.

Other analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. UBS Group reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $156.00 price target (up from $154.00) on shares of American Water Works in a research report on Friday, July 11th. Evercore ISI increased their target price on shares of American Water Works from $139.00 to $148.00 and gave the company an "in-line" rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of American Water Works from $138.00 to $128.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of American Water Works from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $142.00.

American Water Works Price Performance

Shares of American Water Works stock traded down $5.52 on Friday, hitting $141.48. The company's stock had a trading volume of 5,461,601 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,426,675. American Water Works has a 1 year low of $118.74 and a 1 year high of $155.50. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $141.31 and a 200-day moving average price of $139.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 0.32 and a current ratio of 0.35. The company has a market capitalization of $27.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.45 and a beta of 0.65.

American Water Works (NYSE:AWK - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The utilities provider reported $1.48 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.53 by ($0.05). American Water Works had a net margin of 21.91% and a return on equity of 10.34%. The business had revenue of $1.28 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.22 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.42 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 11.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that American Water Works will post 5.71 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CAO Melissa K. Wikle sold 2,825 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $143.28, for a total transaction of $404,766.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 7,572 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,084,916.16. The trade was a 27.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.11% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On American Water Works

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Sumitomo Life Insurance Co. raised its holdings in American Water Works by 1.5% in the 1st quarter. Sumitomo Life Insurance Co. now owns 4,679 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $690,000 after buying an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. Sargent Investment Group LLC grew its position in American Water Works by 2.6% in the 1st quarter. Sargent Investment Group LLC now owns 2,795 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $412,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares during the period. Private Trust Co. NA grew its position in American Water Works by 4.8% in the 1st quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 1,607 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $237,000 after purchasing an additional 74 shares during the period. Obermeyer Wealth Partners boosted its holdings in American Water Works by 3.4% during the 2nd quarter. Obermeyer Wealth Partners now owns 2,280 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $317,000 after acquiring an additional 76 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Foundations Investment Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in American Water Works by 5.0% during the 1st quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,726 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $255,000 after acquiring an additional 82 shares during the last quarter. 86.58% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.