South Dakota Investment Council Acquires 500 Shares of American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK)

South Dakota Investment Council increased its position in shares of American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK) by 7.1% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 7,517 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 500 shares during the period. South Dakota Investment Council’s holdings in American Water Works were worth $992,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. MV Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in American Water Works by 110.8% in the fourth quarter. MV Capital Management Inc. now owns 196 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 103 shares in the last quarter. ORG Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of American Water Works by 79.2% in the fourth quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 233 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 103 shares during the last quarter. Compagnie Lombard Odier SCmA acquired a new stake in American Water Works in the third quarter valued at $33,000. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in American Water Works during the 4th quarter worth about $35,000. Finally, Key Financial Inc increased its position in American Water Works by 266.7% during the 4th quarter. Key Financial Inc now owns 275 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the period. 86.58% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at American Water Works

In other news, EVP Melanie M. Kennedy sold 843 shares of American Water Works stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $119.59, for a total transaction of $100,814.37. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 16,240 shares in the company, valued at $1,942,141.60. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.08% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

American Water Works Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:AWK opened at $121.56 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $119.17 and its 200-day moving average is $124.18. American Water Works Company, Inc. has a twelve month low of $113.34 and a twelve month high of $152.04. The company has a quick ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.20. The firm has a market capitalization of $23.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.86, a PEG ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.63.

American Water Works (NYSE:AWK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 15th. The utilities provider reported $0.88 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.84 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $1.03 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.02 billion. American Water Works had a return on equity of 9.70% and a net margin of 22.30%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.81 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that American Water Works Company, Inc. will post 5.24 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. StockNews.com downgraded American Water Works from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 3rd. Evercore ISI lowered shares of American Water Works from an “outperform” rating to an “in-line” rating and cut their target price for the stock from $160.00 to $135.00 in a research note on Friday, February 16th.

About American Water Works

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.