American States Water (NYSE:AWR) Short Interest Up 5.2% in September

American States Water (NYSE:AWR) was the target of a significant increase in short interest during the month of September. As of September 15th, there was short interest totalling 391,200 shares, an increase of 5.2% from the August 31st total of 372,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 221,900 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 1.8 days.

American States Water Stock Up 0.7 %

AWR stock opened at $83.88 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $82.19 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $76.07. American States Water has a twelve month low of $66.03 and a twelve month high of $85.71. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.14 billion, a PE ratio of 27.41, a PEG ratio of 4.33 and a beta of 0.49. The company has a quick ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 0.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92.

American States Water (NYSE:AWR) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.85 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.87 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $155.30 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $138.00 million. American States Water had a net margin of 18.85% and a return on equity of 13.45%. American States Water’s revenue was down 1.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.83 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that American States Water will post 3.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American States Water Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 16th were issued a $0.4655 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 16th. This represents a $1.86 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.22%. This is a boost from American States Water’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.43. American States Water’s dividend payout ratio is presently 60.78%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have commented on the stock. StockNews.com downgraded shares of American States Water from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of American States Water from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $80.00 to $87.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 31st.

Insider Activity at American States Water

In other American States Water news, Director Anne M. Holloway sold 500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.89, for a total value of $40,445.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 38,519 shares in the company, valued at $3,115,801.91. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.82% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On American States Water

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in AWR. Assetmark Inc. increased its stake in American States Water by 633.3% in the 4th quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 352 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 304 shares during the last quarter. TFO Wealth Partners LLC increased its position in shares of American States Water by 44,000.0% in the fourth quarter. TFO Wealth Partners LLC now owns 441 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 440 shares during the last quarter. ORG Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of American States Water in the second quarter worth approximately $42,000. Clarity Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in American States Water in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $76,000. Finally, CWM LLC lifted its position in American States Water by 31.4% during the second quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,045 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $76,000 after purchasing an additional 250 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.24% of the company’s stock.

American States Water Company Profile

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.