American Water Works Company, Inc. $AWK Stock: New England Research & Management Inc. Trims Stake

New England Research & Management Inc. lowered its stake in American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK) by 15.7% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 23,827 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 4,450 shares during the quarter. American Water Works makes up about 1.2% of New England Research & Management Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 25th biggest position. New England Research & Management Inc.’s holdings in American Water Works were worth $3,085,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of AWK. Mosley Wealth Management lifted its position in shares of American Water Works by 1,289.4% in the third quarter. Mosley Wealth Management now owns 1,306 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $169,000 after buying an additional 1,212 shares in the last quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. boosted its stake in American Water Works by 1,120.8% during the third quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. now owns 73,212 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $9,479,000 after buying an additional 67,215 shares during the last quarter. Stronghold Wealth Management L.L.C. bought a new position in American Water Works during the third quarter valued at approximately $219,000. Hanson & Doremus Investment Management grew its holdings in American Water Works by 250.0% during the 3rd quarter. Hanson & Doremus Investment Management now owns 700 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $91,000 after buying an additional 500 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Paragon Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in American Water Works during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $762,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.58% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have issued reports on AWK shares. Mizuho lifted their price objective on American Water Works from $130.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Truist Financial set a $139.00 price objective on American Water Works in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. Wall Street Zen upgraded American Water Works from a “strong sell” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Barclays raised their target price on shares of American Water Works from $124.00 to $130.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of American Water Works from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Friday, October 2nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $137.12.

American Water Works Price Performance

Shares of American Water Works stock traded up $2.00 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $135.04. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,543,726 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,946,469. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $134.90 and a 200-day moving average price of $131.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.20, a current ratio of 0.52 and a quick ratio of 0.49. The stock has a market cap of $26.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.40, a P/E/G ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.58. American Water Works Company, Inc. has a one year low of $120.57 and a one year high of $145.64.

American Water Works (NYSE:AWK) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The utilities provider reported $1.61 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.53 by $0.08. American Water Works had a net margin of 21.35% and a return on equity of 10.20%. The firm had revenue of $1.35 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.33 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.48 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. American Water Works has set its FY 2026 guidance at 6.020-6.120 EPS. On average, analysts predict that American Water Works Company, Inc. will post 6.09 EPS for the current year.

American Water Works Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 11th were paid a dividend of $0.8950 per share. This represents a $3.58 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, August 11th. American Water Works’s payout ratio is presently 62.05%.

American Water Works Profile

American Water Works Company, Inc is a public water and wastewater utility that provides essential services to residential, commercial, industrial, and governmental customers in the United States. Through its regulated operations, the company collects, treats, distributes, and manages drinking water, as well as collects and treats wastewater.

The company also provides services through businesses that support utilities, municipalities, military installations, and other public-sector customers.