Zacks Research Issues Negative Estimate for AWK Earnings

Key Points

• Zacks Research has lowered its Q2 2026 earnings per share estimate for American Water Works from $1.68 to $1.62, affecting the overall earnings outlook for the company.
• American Water Works reported Q2 earnings of $1.48 per share, missing the analysts' consensus estimate by $0.05 despite a revenue increase of 11.1% year-over-year.
• The company has set its FY 2025 earnings guidance at $5.700-$5.750 per share with a current market cap of $27.03 billion.

American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK - Free Report) - Equities researchers at Zacks Research dropped their Q2 2026 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for shares of American Water Works in a report released on Tuesday, September 9th. Zacks Research analyst Team now expects that the utilities provider will post earnings per share of $1.62 for the quarter, down from their prior forecast of $1.68. The consensus estimate for American Water Works' current full-year earnings is $5.71 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for American Water Works' Q4 2026 earnings at $1.33 EPS, FY2026 earnings at $6.14 EPS and Q2 2027 earnings at $1.66 EPS.

American Water Works (NYSE:AWK - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The utilities provider reported $1.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.53 by ($0.05). The firm had revenue of $1.28 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.22 billion. American Water Works had a return on equity of 10.34% and a net margin of 21.91%.The business's revenue was up 11.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.42 EPS. American Water Works has set its FY 2025 guidance at 5.700-5.750 EPS.

AWK has been the topic of several other reports. Mizuho increased their price target on American Water Works from $148.00 to $149.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Argus increased their price target on American Water Works from $155.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 14th. Barclays cut their price target on American Water Works from $138.00 to $128.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. Wall Street Zen downgraded American Water Works from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. Finally, UBS Group dropped their target price on American Water Works from $156.00 to $151.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, August 12th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and a consensus target price of $143.30.

American Water Works Price Performance

Shares of AWK opened at $138.53 on Thursday. The business's 50-day moving average is $142.53 and its two-hundred day moving average is $142.57. The company has a market capitalization of $27.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.96, a P/E/G ratio of 3.32 and a beta of 0.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 0.32 and a current ratio of 0.35. American Water Works has a fifty-two week low of $118.74 and a fifty-two week high of $155.50.

American Water Works Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 3rd. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 12th were paid a $0.8275 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, August 12th. This represents a $3.31 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.4%. American Water Works's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 59.64%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of AWK. Captrust Financial Advisors raised its position in shares of American Water Works by 6.4% during the 4th quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 7,317 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $911,000 after buying an additional 437 shares during the period. Ethic Inc. grew its stake in shares of American Water Works by 47.4% in the fourth quarter. Ethic Inc. now owns 8,591 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,070,000 after acquiring an additional 2,763 shares in the last quarter. Focus Partners Wealth grew its stake in shares of American Water Works by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 27,547 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $3,494,000 after acquiring an additional 414 shares in the last quarter. Gotham Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of American Water Works by 24.5% in the fourth quarter. Gotham Asset Management LLC now owns 5,950 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $741,000 after acquiring an additional 1,171 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC grew its stake in shares of American Water Works by 617.8% in the fourth quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 164,420 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $20,470,000 after acquiring an additional 141,513 shares in the last quarter. 86.58% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other 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.

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