American States Water (NYSE:AWR) Sees Significant Drop in Short Interest

American States Water (NYSE:AWR) was the recipient of a significant decline in short interest during the month of February. As of February 15th, there was short interest totalling 622,100 shares, a decline of 13.4% from the January 31st total of 718,100 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 205,600 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.0 days.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On American States Water

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Ameriflex Group Inc. bought a new position in American States Water in the 4th quarter worth approximately $78,000. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio bought a new position in American States Water in the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. PharVision Advisers LLC bought a new position in American States Water in the 4th quarter worth approximately $415,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its holdings in American States Water by 29.6% in the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 153,572 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $11,936,000 after buying an additional 35,040 shares in the last quarter. Finally, iSAM Funds UK Ltd bought a new position in American States Water in the 4th quarter worth approximately $573,000. 75.24% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

American States Water Stock Up 2.0 %

NYSE:AWR opened at $79.51 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization 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 stock has a 50 day moving average of $74.79 and a 200-day moving average of $80.17. American States Water has a 52 week low of $66.03 and a 52 week high of $87.50. The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88.

American States Water (NYSE:AWR) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The utilities provider reported $0.69 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.64 by $0.05. American States Water had a return on equity of 13.63% and a net margin of 20.03%. The company had revenue of $143.10 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $160.17 million. Analysts predict that American States Water will post 3.34 EPS for the current year.

American States Water Announces Dividend

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

American States Water Company Profile

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.