MQS Management LLC Takes $301,000 Position in American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK)

MQS Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK) during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm acquired 2,061 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $301,000.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of American Water Works by 4.2% in the third quarter. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC now owns 1,858 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $272,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Miracle Mile Advisors LLC increased its stake in American Water Works by 2.9% during the 3rd quarter. Miracle Mile Advisors LLC now owns 2,790 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $408,000 after purchasing an additional 79 shares in the last quarter. Invesco LLC raised its holdings in American Water Works by 3.4% during the 3rd quarter. Invesco LLC now owns 2,467 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $361,000 after buying an additional 82 shares during the period. Asset Dedication LLC lifted its stake in American Water Works by 1.6% in the second quarter. Asset Dedication LLC now owns 5,415 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $699,000 after buying an additional 85 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Moody National Bank Trust Division increased its position in shares of American Water Works by 2.0% during the second quarter. Moody National Bank Trust Division now owns 4,590 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $593,000 after acquiring an additional 88 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.58% of the company’s stock.

American Water Works Price Performance

NYSE:AWK opened at $132.11 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $25.75 billion, a PE ratio of 26.16, a P/E/G ratio of 3.08 and a beta of 0.70. American Water Works Company, Inc. has a 1-year low of $113.34 and a 1-year high of $150.68. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $141.44 and a 200 day simple moving average of $137.25. The company has a current ratio of 0.58, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21.

American Water Works Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 3rd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 12th will be issued a $0.765 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 12th. This represents a $3.06 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.32%. American Water Works’s payout ratio is 60.59%.

Insider Activity at American Water Works

In other news, Director Martha Clark Goss sold 710 shares of American Water Works stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $142.85, for a total transaction of $101,423.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 36,880 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,268,308. The trade was a 1.89 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.08% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. Bank of America reaffirmed an “underperform” rating and issued a $140.00 price objective on shares of American Water Works in a research report on Friday, September 20th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered American Water Works from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $127.00 to $138.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $164.00 price objective on shares of American Water Works in a report on Thursday, September 19th. Wolfe Research upgraded American Water Works to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 18th. Finally, Mizuho cut shares of American Water Works from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $131.00 to $140.00 in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $140.00.

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.