Smartleaf Asset Management LLC Increases Stake in American States Water (NYSE:AWR)

Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of American States Water (NYSE:AWR) by 488.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,488 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 1,235 shares during the quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC’s holdings in American States Water were worth $116,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC grew its holdings in American States Water by 3.1% during the 4th quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 4,925 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $383,000 after buying an additional 150 shares in the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP grew its holdings in American States Water by 15.0% during the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 1,262 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $91,000 after buying an additional 165 shares in the last quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System grew its holdings in American States Water by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 18,300 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,422,000 after buying an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Inspire Investing LLC grew its holdings in American States Water by 4.1% during the 4th quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 5,257 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $409,000 after buying an additional 206 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in American States Water by 14.4% during the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,720 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $134,000 after buying an additional 216 shares in the last quarter. 75.24% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on AWR shares. Wells Fargo & Company lowered shares of American States Water from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and cut their target price for the company from $84.00 to $77.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. StockNews.com raised shares of American States Water from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday. Finally, Bank of America lowered shares of American States Water from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating and cut their target price for the company from $85.00 to $71.00 in a report on Monday, February 3rd.

American States Water Trading Up 2.0 %

AWR stock opened at $79.51 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $2.98 billion, a PE ratio of 25.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 12.92 and a beta of 0.53. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $74.79 and a 200 day moving average price of $80.17. American States Water has a fifty-two week low of $66.03 and a fifty-two week high of $87.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a current ratio of 0.82.

American States Water (NYSE:AWR) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The utilities provider reported $0.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.64 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $143.10 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $160.17 million. American States Water had a return on equity of 13.63% and a net margin of 20.03%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that American States Water will post 3.34 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American States Water Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be given a $0.4655 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $1.86 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.34%. American States Water’s dividend payout ratio is presently 58.68%.

About American States Water

American States Water Company, through its subsidiaries, provides water and electric services to residential, commercial, industrial, and other customers in the United States. It operates through three segments: Water, Electric, and Contracted Services. The company purchases, produces, distributes, and sells water, as well as distributes electricity.