Vision Capital Management Inc. Acquires New Shares in American States Water (NYSE:AWR)

Vision Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in American States Water (NYSE:AWR) in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor purchased 2,921 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $235,000.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of American States Water by 1.1% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 4,608,581 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $359,239,000 after acquiring an additional 51,731 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp grew its holdings in shares of American States Water by 16.5% during the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 3,572,789 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $291,218,000 after buying an additional 507,209 shares in the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP grew its holdings in shares of American States Water by 5.0% during the first quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 1,131,978 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $100,622,000 after buying an additional 53,468 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of American States Water by 21.0% during the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 884,458 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $69,589,000 after buying an additional 153,409 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in shares of American States Water by 2.8% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 792,476 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $68,945,000 after buying an additional 21,943 shares in the last quarter. 75.24% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at American States Water

In other American States Water news, Director Thomas A. Eichelberger acquired 1,400 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 28th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $71.21 per share, with a total value of $99,694.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 5,850 shares in the company, valued at approximately $416,578.50. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.82% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on American States Water from $79.00 to $77.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 23rd.

American States Water Stock Down 0.4 %

Shares of NYSE:AWR traded down $0.29 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $70.16. 184,220 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 225,404. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $74.06 and its 200-day simple moving average is $77.98. American States Water has a one year low of $69.98 and a one year high of $95.07. The company has a quick ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.12. The company has a market cap of $2.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.82, a P/E/G ratio of 3.75 and a beta of 0.43.

American States Water (NYSE:AWR) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 22nd. The utilities provider reported $0.55 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.53 by $0.02. American States Water had a return on equity of 13.54% and a net margin of 20.97%. The firm had revenue of $125.20 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $132.00 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.42 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was down .2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts predict that American States Water will post 3.01 EPS for the current year.

American States Water Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 1st. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 20th were given a dividend of $0.43 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 16th. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.45%. American States Water’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 51.04%.

About American States Water

American States Water Company, through its subsidiaries, provides water and electric services to residential, commercial, industrial, and other customers in the United States. It operates through three segments: Water, Electric, and Contracted Services. The company purchases, produces, distributes, and sells water, as well as distributes electricity.