American States Water (NYSE:AWR) Reaches New 52-Week High – Time to Buy?

Shares of American States Water (NYSE:AWR) hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $85.73 and last traded at $85.68, with a volume of 26066 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $83.11.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AWR has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. StockNews.com downgraded American States Water from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research 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 target price for the stock from $80.00 to $87.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st.

American States Water Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a current ratio of 0.70. The stock has a market cap of $3.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.31 and a beta of 0.49. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $82.42 and its 200 day moving average is $76.95.

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

American States Water Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 16th were given a dividend of $0.4655 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 16th. This is a positive change from American States Water’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.43. This represents a $1.86 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.13%. American States Water’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 60.78%.

Insider Transactions at American States Water

In other American States Water news, Director Anne M. Holloway sold 500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 owns 38,519 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,115,801.91. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 0.82% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On American States Water

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Inspire Investing LLC boosted its stake in shares of American States Water by 2.9% in the first quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 5,026 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $363,000 after acquiring an additional 140 shares during the last quarter. CWM LLC increased 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 worth $76,000 after purchasing an additional 250 shares during the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System increased its position in American States Water by 2.5% during the second quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 10,421 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $756,000 after purchasing an additional 258 shares during the last quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in American States Water by 9.6% during the second quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,075 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $223,000 after purchasing an additional 269 shares during the period. Finally, First Pacific Financial boosted its holdings in American States Water by 3.4% in the 3rd quarter. First Pacific Financial now owns 8,783 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $732,000 after purchasing an additional 291 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.