Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp. (NYSE:AQN) Receives $6.03 Consensus PT from Analysts

Shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp. (NYSE:AQN) have received a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the eleven brokerages that are covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 1 year price target among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $6.03.

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on AQN. Scotiabank lifted their price objective on shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities from $5.50 to $6.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Monday, May 12th. BMO Capital Markets reiterated a “market perform” rating and issued a $6.00 price objective (up from $5.00) on shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities in a report on Monday, May 12th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Wednesday. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities from $5.50 to $6.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Monday, May 12th. Finally, National Bankshares decreased their target price on shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities from $6.75 to $6.25 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Algonquin Power & Utilities

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities by 65.0% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 12,205,756 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $62,738,000 after purchasing an additional 4,808,539 shares during the last quarter. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities by 84.9% in the first quarter. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. now owns 42,223,594 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $216,868,000 after purchasing an additional 19,392,805 shares during the last quarter. Corvex Management LP increased its holdings in shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities by 69.9% in the first quarter. Corvex Management LP now owns 5,683,855 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $29,215,000 after purchasing an additional 2,338,400 shares during the last quarter. Ariel Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities in the first quarter valued at $35,735,000. Finally, Southpoint Capital Advisors LP acquired a new position in shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities in the first quarter valued at $51,400,000. 62.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Algonquin Power & Utilities Stock Performance

Shares of AQN stock opened at $5.61 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $5.25 and a 200-day moving average of $4.85. Algonquin Power & Utilities has a one year low of $4.19 and a one year high of $6.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 0.92 and a quick ratio of 0.73. The stock has a market cap of $4.31 billion, a PE ratio of -4.35 and a beta of 0.67.

Algonquin Power & Utilities (NYSE:AQN) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, May 9th. The utilities provider reported $0.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.09 by $0.05. Algonquin Power & Utilities had a negative net margin of 39.12% and a positive return on equity of 5.22%. The company had revenue of $692.40 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $699.08 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.14 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Algonquin Power & Utilities will post 0.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Algonquin Power & Utilities Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 30th will be given a dividend of $0.065 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 30th. This represents a $0.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.63%. Algonquin Power & Utilities’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -15.48%.

About Algonquin Power & Utilities

Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp. is an investment holding company, which engages in energy generation and water distribution facilities. It operates through the Regulated Services Group and Renewable Energy Group segments. The Regulated Services Group segment owns and operates a portfolio of electric, natural gas, water distribution, and wastewater collection utility systems and transmission.