Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. Reduces Position in American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK)

Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. cut its position in shares of American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK) by 23.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 33,604 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 10,178 shares during the period. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V.’s holdings in American Water Works were worth $44,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AWK. Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in American Water Works by 24.2% during the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 113,638 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $14,072,000 after buying an additional 22,166 shares in the last quarter. Wealthspire Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in American Water Works by 12.3% during the 3rd quarter. Wealthspire Advisors LLC now owns 2,090 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $259,000 after buying an additional 229 shares in the last quarter. Segantii Capital Management Ltd bought a new stake in American Water Works during the 3rd quarter valued at about $1,622,000. Mitsubishi UFJ Kokusai Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in American Water Works by 7.9% during the 3rd quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Kokusai Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 179,175 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $22,187,000 after buying an additional 13,120 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in American Water Works by 81.2% during the 3rd quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,739 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $463,000 after buying an additional 1,676 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.58% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AWK has been the subject of several recent research reports. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of American Water Works from $124.00 to $139.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, May 13th. Evercore ISI lowered shares of American Water Works from an “outperform” rating to an “in-line” rating and reduced their price target for the company from $160.00 to $135.00 in a report on Friday, February 16th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of American Water Works from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 3rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $141.33.

Insider Transactions at American Water Works

In other news, EVP Melanie M. Kennedy sold 843 shares of American Water Works stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $119.59, for a total value of $100,814.37. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 16,240 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,942,141.60. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 0.08% of the company’s stock.

American Water Works Stock Down 0.3 %

Shares of American Water Works stock opened at $128.23 on Monday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $123.66 and its 200-day moving average price is $125.73. 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 Company, Inc. has a 52-week low of $113.34 and a 52-week high of $151.22. The company has a market cap of $24.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.01, a PEG ratio of 3.06 and a beta of 0.62.

American Water Works (NYSE:AWK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 2nd. The utilities provider reported $0.95 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.98 by ($0.03). American Water Works had a return on equity of 9.74% and a net margin of 22.27%. The firm had revenue of $1.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $962.30 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.91 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 7.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts predict that American Water Works Company, Inc. will post 5.24 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Water Works Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 3rd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 14th will be given a $0.765 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 13th. This represents a $3.06 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.39%. This is an increase from American Water Works’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.71. American Water Works’s payout ratio is presently 62.07%.

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.