NorthRock Partners LLC Grows Stock Holdings in American Water Works Company, Inc. $AWK

NorthRock Partners LLC boosted its stake in American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK) by 19.5% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,067 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 500 shares during the period. NorthRock Partners LLC’s holdings in American Water Works were worth $427,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AWK. Oliver Lagore Vanvalin Investment Group acquired a new position in shares of American Water Works in the second quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Concord Wealth Partners acquired a new position in American Water Works in the 2nd quarter valued at $28,000. Cloud Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in American Water Works during the 1st quarter worth $29,000. WPG Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in shares of American Water Works in the 1st quarter worth $29,000. Finally, Flaharty Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of American Water Works in the first quarter valued at about $30,000. 86.58% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently issued reports on AWK shares. Cowen initiated coverage on shares of American Water Works in a report on Wednesday. They set a “hold” rating for the company. Barclays dropped their target price on American Water Works from $138.00 to $128.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. UBS Group reduced their price target on American Water Works from $156.00 to $151.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, August 12th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on American Water Works from $147.00 to $141.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Finally, Argus upped their price objective on American Water Works from $155.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 14th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, American Water Works presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $143.57.

American Water Works Trading Up 0.6%

Shares of AWK opened at $142.45 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 0.35 and a quick ratio of 0.32. American Water Works Company, Inc. has a 1-year low of $118.74 and a 1-year high of $155.50. The stock has a market cap of $27.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.40 and a beta of 0.70. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $140.73 and a 200-day simple moving average of $142.11.

American Water Works (NYSE:AWK) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The utilities provider reported $1.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.53 by ($0.05). The company had revenue of $1.28 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.22 billion. American Water Works had a net margin of 21.91% and a return on equity of 10.34%. American Water Works’s quarterly revenue was up 11.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.42 EPS. American Water Works has set its FY 2025 guidance at 5.700-5.750 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that American Water Works Company, Inc. will post 5.71 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Water Works Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 3rd. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 12th were given a dividend of $0.8275 per share. This represents a $3.31 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 12th. American Water Works’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 59.64%.

About American Water Works

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.