American States Water (NYSE:AWR) Sets New 12-Month High – Here’s Why

American States Water Company (NYSE:AWR) hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $90.13 and last traded at $89.00, with a volume of 167 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $89.28.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Zacks Research lowered American States Water from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 2nd. Freedom Capital raised American States Water to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, June 29th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded American States Water from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to data from MarketBeat, American States Water has a consensus rating of “Hold”.

American States Water Stock Up 0.6%

The firm has a market cap of $3.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.20, a PEG ratio of 3.47 and a beta of 0.59. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $79.54 and its 200 day moving average price is $76.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 1.22 and a quick ratio of 1.13.

American States Water (NYSE:AWR) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.77 by ($0.01). American States Water had a net margin of 19.66% and a return on equity of 13.06%. The firm had revenue of $169.19 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $157.02 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.70 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 14.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts expect that American States Water Company will post 3.71 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American States Water Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 2nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 18th were issued a $0.504 dividend. This represents a $2.02 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 18th. American States Water’s payout ratio is 58.60%.

Insider Activity at American States Water

In related news, SVP Paul J. Rowley sold 1,304 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.05, for a total transaction of $99,169.20. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 6,520 shares in the company, valued at $495,846. This trade represents a 16.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Anne M. Holloway sold 662 shares of American States Water stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.58, for a total transaction of $50,033.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 39,418 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,979,212.44. This represents a 1.65% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Corporate insiders own 0.90% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of AWR. State of Wyoming acquired a new position in shares of American States Water in the 2nd quarter valued at about $26,000. IFP Advisors Inc raised its stake in American States Water by 113.6% during the fourth quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 549 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 292 shares during the period. Plato Investment Management Ltd acquired a new stake in American States Water during the fourth quarter worth about $45,000. Motiv8 Investments LLC bought a new position in American States Water in the fourth quarter worth about $45,000. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in American States Water by 337.0% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 721 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $55,000 after acquiring an additional 556 shares during the last quarter. 75.24% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

American States Water Company 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.