Middlesex Water (NASDAQ:MSEX) Upgraded at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Middlesex Water (NASDAQ:MSEX) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a report released on Friday morning.

Several other brokerages also recently issued reports on MSEX. Robert W. Baird upgraded Middlesex Water from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $61.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. Baird R W upgraded Middlesex Water from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. Finally, Janney Montgomery Scott reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Middlesex Water in a research report on Friday, April 4th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $58.50.

Middlesex Water Stock Performance

Shares of MSEX stock opened at $62.66 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $59.00 and a 200 day moving average price of $58.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.57 and a current ratio of 0.65. The stock has a market cap of $1.12 billion, a PE ratio of 27.24, a P/E/G ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 0.80. Middlesex Water has a 1 year low of $47.40 and a 1 year high of $70.73.

Middlesex Water (NASDAQ:MSEX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, February 28th. The utilities provider reported $0.49 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 firm had revenue of $47.11 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $45.00 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.32 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Middlesex Water will post 2.34 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Middlesex Water Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 3rd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th were issued a dividend of $0.34 per share. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.17%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 18th. Middlesex Water’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 55.06%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Dennis W. Doll sold 4,067 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.05, for a total value of $244,223.35. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 52,112 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,129,325.60. The trade was a 7.24 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 1.86% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Middlesex Water

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in MSEX. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. raised its position in shares of Middlesex Water by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 19,863 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,045,000 after buying an additional 202 shares during the period. Ellevest Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Middlesex Water by 3.8% in the 4th quarter. Ellevest Inc. now owns 6,395 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $337,000 after purchasing an additional 233 shares in the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can grew its holdings in shares of Middlesex Water by 3.5% during the 4th quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 7,474 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $393,000 after purchasing an additional 250 shares during the period. Sterling Capital Management LLC increased its position in Middlesex Water by 771.9% during the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 497 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 440 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co raised its holdings in Middlesex Water by 2.2% in the fourth quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 20,614 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,081,000 after buying an additional 443 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.52% of the company’s stock.

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.