Middlesex Water (NASDAQ:MSEX) Sees Unusually-High Trading Volume – Here’s Why

Middlesex Water (NASDAQ:MSEX) shares saw an uptick in trading volume on Tuesday . 303,892 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 130% from the previous session’s volume of 131,930 shares.The stock last traded at $53.50 and had previously closed at $53.66.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have commented on MSEX. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on shares of Middlesex Water from $58.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Bank of America began coverage on Middlesex Water in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. They issued an “underperform” rating and a $56.00 target price on the stock.

Middlesex Water Stock Performance

The company has a current ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 0.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $63.69 and its 200-day moving average price is $61.50. The firm has a market cap of $955.24 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.26, a PEG ratio of 1.82 and a beta of 0.82.

Middlesex Water (NASDAQ:MSEX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The utilities provider reported $0.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.67 by $0.13. Middlesex Water had a return on equity of 9.58% and a net margin of 22.53%. The company had revenue of $55.10 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $50.00 million. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.56 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Middlesex Water will post 2.34 earnings per share for the current year.

Middlesex Water Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 15th were given a dividend of $0.34 per share. This is a positive change from Middlesex Water’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.33. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 15th. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.54%. Middlesex Water’s payout ratio is 59.13%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of MSEX. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Middlesex Water by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 434,559 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $28,356,000 after purchasing an additional 3,430 shares during the last quarter. Barclays PLC grew its position in Middlesex Water by 349.4% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 29,919 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,952,000 after buying an additional 23,262 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its stake in Middlesex Water by 7.0% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 813,455 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $53,070,000 after buying an additional 53,098 shares during the period. Thematics Asset Management raised its position in Middlesex Water by 5.8% during the 3rd quarter. Thematics Asset Management now owns 181,000 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $11,808,000 after buying an additional 10,000 shares during the last quarter. Finally, FMR LLC lifted its stake in shares of Middlesex Water by 9.7% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 7,018 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $458,000 after acquiring an additional 618 shares during the period. 79.52% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Middlesex Water

Middlesex Water Company owns and operates regulated water utility and wastewater systems. It operates in Regulated and Non-Regulated segments. The Regulated segment collects, treats, and distributes water on a retail and wholesale basis to residential, commercial, industrial, and fire protection customers, as well as provides regulated wastewater systems in New Jersey and Delaware.