Perpetual Ltd Purchases 2,390 Shares of American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK)

Perpetual Ltd boosted its holdings in American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK) by 2.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 104,162 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 2,390 shares during the quarter. Perpetual Ltd owned approximately 0.05% of American Water Works worth $12,967,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of American Water Works by 155.6% in the 3rd quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC now owns 299 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $44,000 after buying an additional 182 shares during the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new stake in American Water Works in the third quarter valued at approximately $51,000. Assetmark Inc. increased its position in American Water Works by 31.7% during the 3rd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 370 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $54,000 after purchasing an additional 89 shares during the period. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton lifted its position in shares of American Water Works by 29.0% in the 4th quarter. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton now owns 400 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $50,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares during the period. Finally, Raleigh Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of American Water Works by 446.2% in the 3rd quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 426 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $62,000 after purchasing an additional 348 shares during the last quarter. 86.58% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

American Water Works Stock Performance

NYSE:AWK opened at $126.69 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $24.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.09, a P/E/G ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 0.71. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $129.44 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $137.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a current ratio of 0.58 and a quick ratio of 0.53. American Water Works Company, Inc. has a 1 year low of $113.34 and a 1 year high of $150.68.

American Water Works Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Investors of record on Friday, February 7th will be issued a $0.765 dividend. This represents a $3.06 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.42%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 7th. American Water Works’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 60.59%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on AWK shares. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded American Water Works from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $133.00 to $129.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of American Water Works in a research report on Monday, October 7th. They set an “underperform” rating and a $124.00 price objective on the stock. Mizuho downgraded American Water Works from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $131.00 to $140.00 in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. Finally, UBS Group raised American Water Works from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $151.00 to $155.00 in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, American Water Works has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $141.00.

American Water Works Company Profile

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.