WINTON GROUP Ltd Takes Position in Middlesex Water (NASDAQ:MSEX)

WINTON GROUP Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Middlesex Water (NASDAQ:MSEX) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 19,471 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,025,000. WINTON GROUP Ltd owned about 0.11% of Middlesex Water at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in MSEX. Barclays PLC grew its holdings in Middlesex Water by 349.4% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 29,919 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,952,000 after acquiring an additional 23,262 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Middlesex Water by 7.0% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 813,455 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $53,070,000 after purchasing an additional 53,098 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Middlesex Water by 0.8% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 434,559 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $28,356,000 after purchasing an additional 3,430 shares during the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Middlesex Water in the fourth quarter valued at $1,595,000. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its position in Middlesex Water by 3.0% during the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 86,640 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $4,560,000 after purchasing an additional 2,544 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.52% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have commented on MSEX. Baird R W upgraded Middlesex Water from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. StockNews.com upgraded Middlesex Water from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday. Bank of America assumed coverage on shares of Middlesex Water in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. They set an “underperform” rating and a $56.00 price target for the company. Finally, Robert W. Baird raised shares of Middlesex Water from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $61.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 3rd.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Dennis W. Doll sold 4,067 shares of Middlesex Water stock in a transaction on Friday, March 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.05, for a total value of $244,223.35. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 52,112 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,129,325.60. This trade represents a 7.24 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 1.86% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Middlesex Water Stock Up 2.5 %

Shares of Middlesex Water stock opened at $63.48 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $54.85 and its 200 day moving average is $59.09. Middlesex Water has a one year low of $45.42 and a one year high of $70.73. The firm has a market cap of $1.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.60, a PEG ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 0.65 and a quick ratio of 0.57.

Middlesex Water (NASDAQ:MSEX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, February 28th. The utilities provider reported $0.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.36 by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $47.11 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $45.00 million. Middlesex Water had a return on equity of 9.58% and a net margin of 22.53%. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.32 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Middlesex Water will post 2.34 EPS for the current year.

Middlesex Water Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 3rd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th were issued a dividend of $0.34 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.14%. Middlesex Water’s dividend payout ratio is currently 55.06%.

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.