Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp. (NYSE:AQN) Short Interest Down 6.4% in August

Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp. (NYSE:AQN) saw a large decrease in short interest during the month of August. As of August 31st, there was short interest totalling 15,440,000 shares, a decrease of 6.4% from the August 15th total of 16,490,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 6,590,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.3 days. Currently, 2.0% of the company’s stock are short sold.

Algonquin Power & Utilities Stock Performance

Shares of AQN stock opened at $5.51 on Thursday. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $5.67 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $5.99. The company has a quick ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.08. The company has a market capitalization of $4.22 billion, a PE ratio of -11.23 and a beta of 0.67. Algonquin Power & Utilities has a 12-month low of $4.90 and a 12-month high of $7.14.

Algonquin Power & Utilities (NYSE:AQN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, August 9th. The utilities provider reported $0.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.08 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $598.60 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $635.95 million. Algonquin Power & Utilities had a net margin of 4.70% and a return on equity of 5.36%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.08 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that Algonquin Power & Utilities will post 0.43 earnings per share for the current year.

Algonquin Power & Utilities Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 30th will be given a $0.065 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 30th. This represents a $0.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.72%. Algonquin Power & Utilities’s payout ratio is -53.06%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the company. Scotiabank decreased their price target on Algonquin Power & Utilities from $6.50 to $5.75 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, August 13th. National Bank Financial upgraded shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, August 12th. Wells Fargo & Company downgraded shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and cut their target price for the company from $8.50 to $6.00 in a research note on Monday, August 12th. National Bankshares raised their target price on shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities from $6.75 to $7.25 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 28th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada cut their target price on shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities from $7.00 to $6.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, August 13th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $6.33.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Algonquin Power & Utilities

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in AQN. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities by 754.0% in the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 15,552,484 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $98,292,000 after buying an additional 13,731,305 shares in the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its position in shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities by 320.6% in the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 7,273,228 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $42,633,000 after buying an additional 5,544,063 shares in the last quarter. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp raised its position in shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities by 156.0% in the second quarter. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp now owns 8,905,059 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $52,341,000 after buying an additional 5,426,523 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,322,000. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC raised its position in shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities by 851.0% in the first quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 3,765,026 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $23,797,000 after buying an additional 3,369,124 shares in the last quarter. 62.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Algonquin Power & Utilities Company Profile

Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp. operates in the power and utility industries in the United States, Canada, and other regions. The company operates in two segments, Regulated Services Group and Renewable Energy Group. The company primarily owns and operates a regulated electric, water distribution and wastewater collection, and natural gas utility systems and transmission operations.