Huntington Sec Begins Coverage on Middlesex Water (NASDAQ:MSEX)

Equities researchers at Huntington Sec started coverage on shares of Middlesex Water (NASDAQ:MSEX) in a note issued to investors on Sunday, Zacks reports. The brokerage set a “strong-buy” rating on the utilities provider’s stock.

Other research analysts have also issued reports about the company. Robert W. Baird set a $66.00 price objective on Middlesex Water in a report on Friday, July 31st. Freedom Broker upped their price target on shares of Middlesex Water from $56.00 to $58.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Middlesex Water from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Monday, October 12th. Finally, New Street Research set a $64.00 target price on Middlesex Water in a report on Thursday, July 9th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $60.75.

Middlesex Water Trading Down 1.2%

MSEX stock opened at $57.64 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 0.51 and a quick ratio of 0.42. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $55.47 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $54.24. Middlesex Water has a one year low of $48.19 and a one year high of $59.80. The stock has a market cap of $1.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.81 and a beta of 0.71.

Middlesex Water (NASDAQ:MSEX) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 29th. The utilities provider reported $0.95 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.82 by $0.13. The company had revenue of $60.21 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $59.90 million. Middlesex Water had a net margin of 24.50% and a return on equity of 10.08%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Middlesex Water news, VP Lorrie Ginegaw sold 615 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.61, for a total value of $35,430.15. Following the sale, the vice president owned 3,978 shares in the company, valued at approximately $229,172.58. The trade was a 13.39% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 1.92% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. bought a new position in shares of Middlesex Water in the 2nd quarter worth about $25,000. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in Middlesex Water in the second quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC acquired a new stake in Middlesex Water in the 2nd quarter valued at $28,000. Parallel Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Middlesex Water by 68.6% in the first quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 521 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 212 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Western Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Middlesex Water in the 1st quarter valued at about $33,000. Institutional investors own 79.52% of the company’s stock.

About Middlesex Water

Middlesex Water Company (NASDAQ:MSEX) is a regulated water and wastewater utility that owns and operates systems serving residential, commercial, industrial and municipal customers. Its services include the production, treatment, distribution and sale of potable water, as well as wastewater collection and treatment.

Founded in 1897, the company primarily serves communities in New Jersey and Delaware through its regulated utility operations. Its New Jersey service area includes portions of Middlesex, Union, Somerset and Mercer counties, while its Delaware operations serve customers through the Tidewater Utilities subsidiary.

Middlesex Water also provides contract operations, maintenance and related services for municipal and other public water and wastewater systems.