Short Interest in Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp. (NYSE:AQN) Rises By 21.6%

Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp. (NYSE:AQN) was the target of a significant growth in short interest in December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 18,570,000 shares, a growth of 21.6% from the December 15th total of 15,270,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 5,520,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 3.4 days. Currently, 2.4% of the company’s stock are sold short.

Institutional Trading of Algonquin Power & Utilities

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division acquired a new position in shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $54,000. Capstone Investment Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities in the third quarter valued at about $58,000. Walleye Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities during the third quarter worth approximately $59,000. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities during the third quarter worth $61,000. Finally, Ballentine Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities during the fourth quarter valued at $63,000. 62.28% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently commented on the stock. CIBC lowered their price objective on shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities from $5.75 to $5.50 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a “neutral” rating and set a $7.00 price target on shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Scotiabank decreased their target price on Algonquin Power & Utilities from $5.75 to $5.25 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities from $6.00 to $5.50 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a $6.00 price objective on shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities in a research report on Friday, October 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $6.13.

Algonquin Power & Utilities Stock Down 0.1 %

NYSE AQN opened at $4.41 on Friday. Algonquin Power & Utilities has a 1-year low of $4.19 and a 1-year high of $6.79. The company has a market capitalization of $3.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -3.41 and a beta of 0.69. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $4.60 and its two-hundred day moving average is $5.17. The company has a current ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17.

Algonquin Power & Utilities (NYSE:AQN) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The utilities provider reported $0.08 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.09 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $573.20 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $620.46 million. Algonquin Power & Utilities had a negative net margin of 39.12% and a positive return on equity of 5.22%. The business’s revenue was up 1.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.11 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Algonquin Power & Utilities will post 0.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Algonquin Power & Utilities Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 31st were issued a dividend of $0.065 per share. This represents a $0.26 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.90%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, December 31st. Algonquin Power & Utilities’s dividend payout ratio is currently -20.15%.

Algonquin Power & Utilities Company Profile

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.