GAMMA Investing LLC Grows Stake in American States Water (NYSE:AWR)

GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in American States Water (NYSE:AWR) by 14.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,720 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 216 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC’s holdings in American States Water were worth $134,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Assetmark Inc. acquired a new position in American States Water during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $50,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of American States Water by 18,820.0% during the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 946 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $79,000 after purchasing an additional 941 shares during the period. Quarry LP acquired a new position in shares of American States Water during the second quarter worth $80,000. KBC Group NV boosted its stake in shares of American States Water by 31.9% in the third quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,236 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $103,000 after purchasing an additional 299 shares during the period. Finally, CWM LLC grew its holdings in American States Water by 33.3% during the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,393 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $116,000 after purchasing an additional 348 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.24% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company lowered shares of American States Water from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and cut their price objective for the stock from $84.00 to $77.00 in a report on Tuesday. Bank of America began coverage on American States Water in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $85.00 target price on the stock. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded American States Water from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 27th.

American States Water Stock Performance

Shares of American States Water stock opened at $72.87 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a current ratio of 0.69. American States Water has a 1 year low of $66.03 and a 1 year high of $87.50. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $81.77 and its 200-day simple moving average is $81.20. The firm has a market cap of $2.73 billion, a PE ratio of 24.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.77 and a beta of 0.53.

American States Water (NYSE:AWR) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.95 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.98 by ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $161.78 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $161.00 million. American States Water had a net margin of 19.26% and a return on equity of 13.53%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.85 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that American States Water will post 3.02 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American States Water Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, November 15th were paid a dividend of $0.4655 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 15th. This represents a $1.86 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.56%. American States Water’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 62.63%.

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.