American States Water (NYSE:AWR) Shares Sold by Kennedy Capital Management LLC

Kennedy Capital Management LLC lowered its position in shares of American States Water (NYSE:AWR) by 7.8% during the first quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 47,622 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 4,024 shares during the quarter. Kennedy Capital Management LLC’s holdings in American States Water were worth $3,440,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in AWR. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd purchased a new stake in American States Water in the 1st quarter valued at about $632,000. UBS Group AG grew its holdings in American States Water by 28.7% in the fourth quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 95,385 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $7,671,000 after purchasing an additional 21,270 shares during the period. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC increased its position in American States Water by 859.4% during the first quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 23,707 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,713,000 after purchasing an additional 21,236 shares during the last quarter. Quadrature Capital Ltd increased its position in American States Water by 104.3% during the first quarter. Quadrature Capital Ltd now owns 19,366 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,399,000 after purchasing an additional 9,889 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Edgestream Partners L.P. raised its stake in American States Water by 229.0% during the first quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. now owns 45,388 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $3,279,000 after purchasing an additional 31,593 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.24% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Mary Ann Hopkins acquired 560 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 30th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $71.53 per share, with a total value of $40,056.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 3,606 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $257,937.18. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, Director Mary Ann Hopkins bought 560 shares of American States Water stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 30th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $71.53 per share, with a total value of $40,056.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 3,606 shares in the company, valued at approximately $257,937.18. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Thomas A. Eichelberger bought 640 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 22nd. The stock was purchased at an average price of $77.62 per share, with a total value of $49,676.80. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 7,006 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $543,805.72. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.82% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of American States Water from $77.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 9th.

American States Water Trading Up 1.4 %

Shares of American States Water stock traded up $1.18 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $82.56. The stock had a trading volume of 122,313 shares, compared to its average volume of 223,864. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.60, a P/E/G ratio of 4.36 and a beta of 0.46. American States Water has a 1 year low of $66.03 and a 1 year high of $89.73. The company has a current ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $74.22 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $73.61.

American States Water (NYSE:AWR) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, May 8th. The utilities provider reported $0.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.62. The firm had revenue of $135.30 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $119.00 million. American States Water had a net margin of 19.95% and a return on equity of 13.65%. The company’s revenue was down 16.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.54 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that American States Water will post 3.01 earnings per share for the current year.

American States Water Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 3rd. Investors of record on Monday, May 20th were issued a dividend of $0.43 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 17th. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.08%. American States Water’s payout ratio is 56.21%.

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.