IQ EQ FUND MANAGEMENT IRELAND Ltd Trims Stock Holdings in Middlesex Water (NASDAQ:MSEX)

IQ EQ FUND MANAGEMENT IRELAND Ltd lowered its holdings in shares of Middlesex Water (NASDAQ:MSEX) by 12.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 18,767 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 2,566 shares during the quarter. IQ EQ FUND MANAGEMENT IRELAND Ltd owned 0.11% of Middlesex Water worth $988,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Victory Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in Middlesex Water in the 3rd quarter worth about $230,000. Intech Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Middlesex Water during the third quarter valued at approximately $271,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Middlesex Water by 4.3% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 167,281 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $10,913,000 after acquiring an additional 6,844 shares in the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Middlesex Water by 13.6% in the third quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 20,245 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,321,000 after purchasing an additional 2,429 shares during the period. Finally, FMR LLC grew its stake in Middlesex Water by 9.7% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 7,018 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $458,000 after purchasing an additional 618 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.52% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Dennis W. Doll sold 4,067 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, March 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.05, for a total transaction of $244,223.35. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 52,112 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,129,325.60. This represents a 7.24 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 1.86% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have weighed in on MSEX. StockNews.com raised Middlesex Water from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 19th. Bank of America began coverage on Middlesex Water in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. They issued an “underperform” rating and a $56.00 price objective for the company. Baird R W upgraded shares of Middlesex Water from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Finally, Robert W. Baird upgraded shares of Middlesex Water from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $61.00 price target for the company in a report on Monday, March 3rd.

Middlesex Water Trading Up 0.7 %

MSEX opened at $61.95 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 0.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80. The firm has a market cap of $1.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.93, a PEG ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 0.85. Middlesex Water has a 12 month low of $45.42 and a 12 month high of $70.73. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $54.60 and a 200-day moving average price of $59.12.

Middlesex Water (NASDAQ:MSEX) last announced its earnings results on Friday, February 28th. The utilities provider reported $0.49 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.36 by $0.13. Middlesex Water had a net margin of 22.53% and a return on equity of 9.58%. The business had revenue of $47.11 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $45.00 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.32 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Middlesex Water will post 2.34 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Middlesex Water Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 3rd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th were paid a $0.34 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.20%. Middlesex Water’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 55.06%.

Middlesex Water Company Profile

Middlesex Water Company owns and operates regulated water utility and wastewater systems. It operates in Regulated and Non-Regulated segments. The Regulated segment collects, treats, and distributes water on a retail and wholesale basis to residential, commercial, industrial, and fire protection customers, as well as provides regulated wastewater systems in New Jersey and Delaware.