Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. Raises Stake in American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK)

Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its position in shares of American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK) by 36.5% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 21,171 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 5,657 shares during the quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd.’s holdings in American Water Works were worth $2,648,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Crews Bank & Trust acquired a new stake in shares of American Water Works during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC lifted its position in American Water Works by 155.6% during the third quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC now owns 299 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $44,000 after buying an additional 182 shares during the period. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in American Water Works in the 3rd quarter worth about $51,000. Assetmark Inc. grew its holdings in American Water Works by 31.7% in the 3rd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 370 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $54,000 after buying an additional 89 shares during the period. Finally, Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton increased its stake in shares of American Water Works by 29.0% during the 4th quarter. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton now owns 400 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $50,000 after acquiring an additional 90 shares during the last quarter. 86.58% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

American Water Works Trading Down 1.2 %

NYSE:AWK opened at $122.53 on Monday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $125.92 and its two-hundred day moving average is $135.83. The firm has a market capitalization of $23.88 billion, a PE ratio of 24.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.72. American Water Works Company, Inc. has a 12 month low of $113.34 and a 12 month high of $150.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a current ratio of 0.58 and a quick ratio of 0.53.

American Water Works Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Investors of record on Friday, February 7th will be given a dividend of $0.765 per share. This represents a $3.06 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.50%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 7th. American Water Works’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 60.59%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently issued reports on AWK. Mizuho cut shares of American Water Works from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $131.00 to $140.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of American Water Works from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $133.00 to $129.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on American Water Works from $147.00 to $128.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, UBS Group raised American Water Works from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $151.00 to $155.00 in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $139.38.

American Water Works Profile

American Water Works Company, Inc, through its subsidiaries, provides water and wastewater services in the United States. It offers water and wastewater services to approximately 1,700 communities in 14 states serving approximately 3.5 million active customers. The company serves residential customers; commercial customers, including food and beverage providers, commercial property developers and proprietors, and energy suppliers; fire service and private fire customers; industrial customers, such as large-scale manufacturers, mining, and production operations; public authorities comprising government buildings and other public sector facilities, such as schools and universities; and other utilities and community water and wastewater systems.