National Pension Service Buys 31,195 Shares of American Water Works Company, Inc. $AWK

National Pension Service raised its stake in shares of American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK) by 12.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 276,909 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 31,195 shares during the period. National Pension Service’s holdings in American Water Works were worth $36,137,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of AWK. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC lifted its stake in American Water Works by 383.0% during the 3rd quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 2,596,125 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $361,355,000 after acquiring an additional 2,058,656 shares during the period. Impax Asset Management Group plc lifted its stake in American Water Works by 38.0% during the 4th quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc now owns 2,386,873 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $311,487,000 after acquiring an additional 657,849 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in American Water Works by 2.3% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 26,227,049 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $3,650,543,000 after acquiring an additional 597,916 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. lifted its stake in American Water Works by 81.8% during the 2nd quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. now owns 1,043,899 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $145,217,000 after acquiring an additional 469,641 shares during the period. Finally, Balyasny Asset Management L.P. bought a new position in American Water Works during the 3rd quarter valued at about $45,769,000. Institutional investors own 86.58% of the company’s stock.

American Water Works Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:AWK opened at $123.29 on Monday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $130.96 and its 200-day moving average price is $131.10. American Water Works Company, Inc. has a twelve month low of $121.28 and a twelve month high of $147.87. The company has a quick ratio of 0.34, a current ratio of 0.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16. The stock has a market capitalization of $24.08 billion, a PE ratio of 21.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.67 and a beta of 0.62.

American Water Works (NYSE:AWK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The utilities provider reported $1.01 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.10 by ($0.09). American Water Works had a return on equity of 10.20% and a net margin of 21.17%.The business had revenue of $1.21 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.17 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.05 EPS. American Water Works’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. American Water Works has set its FY 2026 guidance at 6.020-6.120 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that American Water Works Company, Inc. will post 6.09 EPS for the current year.

American Water Works Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 2nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 12th will be paid a $0.895 dividend. This is a boost from American Water Works’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 12th. This represents a $3.58 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.9%. American Water Works’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 63.48%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AWK has been the topic of several research analyst reports. UBS Group upgraded shares of American Water Works from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the company from $137.00 to $140.00 in a research note on Friday. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of American Water Works from a “strong sell” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Sunday, April 26th. Barclays upped their target price on shares of American Water Works from $122.00 to $124.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $131.00 target price on shares of American Water Works in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. Finally, Bank of America reduced their price target on shares of American Water Works from $147.00 to $134.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 21st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, American Water Works has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $138.11.

American Water Works Company Profile

American Water Works Company, Inc (NYSE: AWK) is a publicly traded utility company that provides water and wastewater services in the United States. Its core business is the operation, management and maintenance of regulated water and wastewater systems that deliver potable water, collect and treat wastewater, and provide related customer services to residential, commercial and industrial customers as well as municipalities. The company’s operations include water treatment and distribution, wastewater collection and treatment, meter reading and billing, emergency repairs, and long-term infrastructure planning and capital project execution.

In addition to its regulated utility operations, American Water offers complementary nonregulated services and solutions that support system reliability and customer needs.