FY2024 EPS Forecast for American Water Works Cut by Analyst

American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK) – Equities researchers at Zacks Research decreased their FY2024 earnings per share estimates for shares of American Water Works in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday, November 20th. Zacks Research analyst R. Department now expects that the utilities provider will post earnings of $5.27 per share for the year, down from their previous estimate of $5.28. The consensus estimate for American Water Works’ current full-year earnings is $5.27 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for American Water Works’ Q2 2026 earnings at $1.53 EPS.

Several other equities analysts have also issued reports on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company lowered shares of American Water Works from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $127.00 to $138.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Wolfe Research upgraded shares of American Water Works to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 18th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $164.00 target price on shares of American Water Works in a report on Thursday, September 19th. Bank of America reiterated an “underperform” rating and set a $140.00 target price on shares of American Water Works in a report on Friday, September 20th. Finally, UBS Group upgraded shares of American Water Works from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $151.00 to $155.00 in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $142.29.

American Water Works Price Performance

AWK stock opened at $137.63 on Monday. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $139.56 and a 200-day moving average price of $137.80. American Water Works has a 52-week low of $113.34 and a 52-week high of $150.68. The firm has a market capitalization of $26.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.25, a PEG ratio of 3.20 and a beta of 0.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a current ratio of 0.58.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On American Water Works

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. ORG Partners LLC purchased a new stake in American Water Works during the 2nd quarter valued at $30,000. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC raised its stake in American Water Works by 155.6% during the 3rd quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC now owns 299 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $44,000 after buying an additional 182 shares during the last quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. purchased a new stake in American Water Works during the 2nd quarter valued at $46,000. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in American Water Works during the 2nd quarter valued at $50,000. Finally, Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new stake in shares of American Water Works during the 3rd quarter valued at $51,000. 86.58% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other American Water Works news, Director Martha Clark Goss sold 710 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $142.85, for a total transaction of $101,423.50. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 36,880 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,268,308. The trade was a 1.89 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.08% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

American Water Works Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 3rd. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 12th will be issued a $0.765 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 12th. This represents a $3.06 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.22%. American Water Works’s payout ratio is currently 60.59%.

American Water Works Company 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.