RWC Asset Management LLP Takes Position in American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK)

RWC Asset Management LLP acquired a new position in shares of American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 20,932 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $2,606,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its position in American Water Works by 5.5% during the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,418,102 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $300,739,000 after purchasing an additional 125,128 shares during the period. Sovran Advisors LLC bought a new stake in American Water Works during the fourth quarter worth about $277,000. Czech National Bank lifted its position in American Water Works by 6.5% during the fourth quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 42,257 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $5,261,000 after purchasing an additional 2,562 shares during the period. Swedbank AB lifted its position in American Water Works by 65.5% during the third quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 106,383 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $15,557,000 after purchasing an additional 42,094 shares during the period. Finally, PFW Advisors LLC bought a new stake in American Water Works during the fourth quarter worth about $1,783,000. Institutional investors own 86.58% of the company’s stock.

American Water Works Price Performance

American Water Works stock opened at $132.63 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $25.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.61, a PEG ratio of 2.72 and a beta of 0.72. American Water Works Company, Inc. has a 52-week low of $113.34 and a 52-week high of $150.68. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $124.93 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $134.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a current ratio of 0.39.

American Water Works (NYSE:AWK) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The utilities provider reported $1.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.13 by $0.09. American Water Works had a net margin of 22.44% and a return on equity of 10.29%. The business had revenue of $1.20 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.11 billion. On average, equities analysts predict that American Water Works Company, Inc. will post 5.71 earnings per share for the current year.

American Water Works Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Investors of record on Friday, February 7th will be given a $0.765 dividend. This represents a $3.06 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.31%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 7th. American Water Works’s payout ratio is currently 56.77%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently weighed in on AWK. UBS Group raised shares of American Water Works from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $151.00 to $155.00 in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on American Water Works from $147.00 to $128.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on American Water Works from $129.00 to $133.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $140.57.

American Water Works 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.