Vontobel Holding Ltd. Reduces Stock Holdings in American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK)

Vontobel Holding Ltd. lowered its stake in shares of American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK) by 0.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 494,601 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 3,382 shares during the quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. owned 0.25% of American Water Works worth $61,573,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Crews Bank & Trust bought a new position in American Water Works during the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of American Water Works by 155.6% during the 3rd quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC now owns 299 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $44,000 after purchasing an additional 182 shares during the period. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC bought a new position in American Water Works during the 4th quarter valued at about $48,000. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton raised its position in 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, Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new stake in American Water Works in the third quarter worth about $51,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.58% of the company’s stock.

American Water Works Price Performance

Shares of AWK stock opened at $126.79 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $24.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.11, a P/E/G ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.72. 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 Company, Inc. has a twelve month low of $113.34 and a twelve month high of $150.68. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $125.38 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $135.47.

American Water Works Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 7th will be issued a dividend of $0.765 per share. This represents a $3.06 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.41%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 7th. American Water Works’s payout ratio is 60.59%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently commented on AWK shares. UBS Group raised American Water Works from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the company from $151.00 to $155.00 in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on American Water Works from $147.00 to $128.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upgraded American Water Works from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $133.00 to $129.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $139.38.

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.