King Luther Capital Management Corp Takes Position in American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK)

King Luther Capital Management Corp purchased a new position in shares of American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK) during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 1,576 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $230,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. ORG Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of American Water Works during the 2nd quarter valued at about $30,000. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of American Water Works by 155.6% in the third 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 in the last quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. acquired a new position in shares of American Water Works during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $46,000. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of American Water Works during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $50,000. Finally, Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in American Water Works in the 3rd quarter valued at $51,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.58% of the company’s stock.

American Water Works Price Performance

NYSE:AWK opened at $137.31 on Monday. American Water Works Company, Inc. has a one year low of $113.34 and a one year high of $150.68. The stock has a market cap of $26.76 billion, a PE ratio of 27.19, a P/E/G ratio of 3.23 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. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $140.05 and a 200 day moving average price of $137.76.

American Water Works Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 3rd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 12th will be paid a dividend of $0.765 per share. This represents a $3.06 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.23%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 12th. American Water Works’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 60.59%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AWK has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company cut shares of American Water Works from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $127.00 to $138.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $164.00 price target on shares of American Water Works in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. Bank of America reiterated an “underperform” rating and set a $140.00 price objective on shares of American Water Works in a research note on Friday, September 20th. Mizuho downgraded American Water Works from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and raised their target price for the company from $131.00 to $140.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. Finally, UBS Group upgraded American Water Works from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $151.00 to $155.00 in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $142.29.

Insider Buying and Selling at American Water Works

In other news, Director Martha Clark Goss sold 710 shares of American Water Works stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the director now owns 36,880 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,268,308. The trade was a 1.89 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 0.08% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.