American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK) Shares Purchased by Townsend & Associates Inc

Townsend & Associates Inc grew its position in American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK) by 1.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 14,630 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 186 shares during the quarter. Townsend & Associates Inc’s holdings in American Water Works were worth $1,784,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. MV Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in American Water Works by 110.8% during the fourth quarter. MV Capital Management Inc. now owns 196 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 103 shares in the last quarter. ORG Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of American Water Works by 79.2% during the 4th quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 233 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 103 shares during the last quarter. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in American Water Works in the 4th quarter valued at about $35,000. Key Financial Inc raised its position in American Water Works by 266.7% during the fourth quarter. Key Financial Inc now owns 275 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cetera Trust Company N.A acquired a new stake in shares of American Water Works in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $40,000. 86.58% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have commented on AWK. StockNews.com cut shares of American Water Works from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 3rd. Evercore ISI downgraded shares of American Water Works from an “outperform” rating to an “in-line” rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $160.00 to $135.00 in a research note on Friday, February 16th.

Insider Buying and Selling at American Water Works

In other news, EVP Melanie M. Kennedy sold 843 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $119.59, for a total value of $100,814.37. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 16,240 shares in the company, valued at $1,942,141.60. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.08% of the company’s stock.

American Water Works Stock Performance

NYSE AWK traded up $1.73 on Thursday, hitting $134.60. The stock had a trading volume of 433,827 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,484,834. The company’s 50-day moving average is $120.06 and its two-hundred day moving average is $124.63. American Water Works Company, Inc. has a one year low of $113.34 and a one year high of $151.24. The stock has a market cap of $26.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.24, a P/E/G ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.62. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26.

American Water Works (NYSE:AWK) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The utilities provider reported $0.95 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.98 by ($0.03). American Water Works had a net margin of 22.27% and a return on equity of 9.74%. The business had revenue of $1.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $962.30 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.91 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 7.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts expect that American Water Works Company, Inc. will post 5.24 earnings per share for the current year.

American Water Works Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 3rd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 14th will be issued a dividend of $0.765 per share. This represents a $3.06 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.27%. This is an increase from American Water Works’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.71. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 13th. American Water Works’s dividend payout ratio is currently 57.40%.

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.