Magellan Asset Management Ltd Buys 9,297 Shares of American Water Works Company, Inc. $AWK

Magellan Asset Management Ltd increased its stake in shares of American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK) by 5.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 177,479 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 9,297 shares during the quarter. Magellan Asset Management Ltd’s holdings in American Water Works were worth $23,161,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of AWK. Norges Bank bought a new position in American Water Works during the fourth quarter worth $337,004,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC lifted its position in shares of American Water Works by 383.0% in 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 worth $361,355,000 after acquiring an additional 2,058,656 shares during the period. Impax Asset Management Group plc lifted its position in shares of American Water Works by 38.0% in the 4th quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc now owns 2,386,873 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $311,487,000 after acquiring an additional 657,849 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of American Water Works by 2.3% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 26,227,049 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $3,650,543,000 after acquiring an additional 597,916 shares during the period. Finally, Eurizon Capital SGR S.p.A. bought a new stake in shares of American Water Works in the 4th quarter worth approximately $69,855,000. Institutional investors own 86.58% of the company’s stock.

American Water Works Stock Performance

NYSE AWK opened at $122.31 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $23.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.69, a PEG ratio of 2.68 and a beta of 0.62. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $129.92 and its 200 day simple moving average is $130.87. American Water Works Company, Inc. has a twelve month low of $120.57 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.

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

American Water Works Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 2nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 12th were issued a $0.895 dividend. This represents a $3.58 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, May 12th. This is a positive change from American Water Works’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. American Water Works’s payout ratio is currently 63.48%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have commented on AWK. Bank of America reduced their price objective on 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. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of American Water Works from $122.00 to $124.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Monday, April 20th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of American Water Works in a report on Friday, March 27th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $131.00 price target on shares of American Water Works in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of American Water Works from a “strong sell” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Sunday, April 26th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $138.11.

About American Water Works

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.