Country Trust Bank Purchases 41,808 Shares of American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK)

Country Trust Bank boosted its position in American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK) by 20.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 248,773 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 41,808 shares during the period. Country Trust Bank owned 0.13% of American Water Works worth $30,970,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Crews Bank & Trust acquired a new stake in shares of American Water Works during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. OLD National Bancorp IN grew its holdings in American Water Works by 10.6% during the 4th quarter. OLD National Bancorp IN now owns 2,796 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $348,000 after acquiring an additional 267 shares during the period. Busey Bank bought a new stake in shares of American Water Works during the 4th quarter valued at $244,000. Swedbank AB increased its holdings in American Water Works by 10.3% in the fourth quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 117,393 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $14,614,000 after purchasing an additional 11,010 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Forsta AP Fonden boosted its holdings in American Water Works by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. Forsta AP Fonden now owns 34,800 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $4,332,000 after buying an additional 600 shares during the last quarter. 86.58% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

American Water Works Stock Performance

AWK opened at $123.56 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $24.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.47, a P/E/G ratio of 2.63 and a beta of 0.71. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $127.54 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $136.54. American Water Works Company, Inc. has a 1 year low of $113.34 and a 1 year high of $150.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a current ratio of 0.58 and a quick ratio of 0.53.

American Water Works Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 7th will be given a dividend of $0.765 per share. This represents a $3.06 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.48%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 7th. American Water Works’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 60.59%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on American Water Works in a research note on Monday, October 7th. They issued an “underperform” rating and a $124.00 price target for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of American Water Works from $147.00 to $128.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday. UBS Group raised shares of American Water Works from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $151.00 to $155.00 in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. Mizuho cut shares of American Water Works from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $131.00 to $140.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upgraded American Water Works from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $133.00 to $129.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $139.38.

About American Water Works

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.