American States Water (NYSE:AWR) Downgraded to “Hold” Rating by Zacks Research

Zacks Research cut shares of American States Water (NYSE:AWR) from a strong-buy rating to a hold rating in a report published on Tuesday morning,Zacks.com reports.

Separately, Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of American States Water in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold”.

American States Water Stock Down 1.3%

NYSE:AWR opened at $76.30 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.01 and a beta of 0.60. American States Water has a twelve month low of $69.45 and a twelve month high of $81.24. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $76.79 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $74.65. The company has a quick ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 1.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86.

American States Water (NYSE:AWR) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.76 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.77 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $169.19 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $157.02 million. American States Water had a return on equity of 13.06% and a net margin of 19.66%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.70 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that American States Water will post 3.71 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American States Water Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 2nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 18th were paid a dividend of $0.504 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 18th. This represents a $2.02 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.6%. American States Water’s payout ratio is currently 58.89%.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Paul J. Rowley sold 1,304 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $76.05, for a total transaction of $99,169.20. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 6,520 shares in the company, valued at $495,846. The trade was a 16.67% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Anne M. Holloway sold 662 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.58, for a total transaction of $50,033.96. Following the transaction, the director owned 39,418 shares in the company, valued at $2,979,212.44. This represents a 1.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.90% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of American States Water

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of AWR. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in American States Water by 6.2% in the 2nd quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 2,563 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $196,000 after purchasing an additional 150 shares during the period. Wealthfront Advisers LLC boosted its holdings in American States Water by 4.7% in the 4th quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC now owns 3,339 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $242,000 after purchasing an additional 150 shares during the period. Arizona State Retirement System boosted its holdings in American States Water by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 11,395 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $835,000 after purchasing an additional 156 shares during the period. US Bancorp DE boosted its holdings in American States Water by 2.1% in the 3rd quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 7,663 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $562,000 after purchasing an additional 159 shares during the period. Finally, Parallel Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in American States Water by 5.6% in the 4th quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 3,033 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $220,000 after purchasing an additional 161 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 75.24% of the company’s stock.

About American States Water

American States Water Company (NYSE: AWR), founded in 1929 and headquartered in San Dimas, California, is a publicly traded utility holding company. The company operates primarily through two regulated segments—water and electric utilities—and provides non-regulated water system services. Over its history, American States Water has expanded its footprint through strategic acquisitions and organic growth, positioning itself as a reliable provider of essential services in its core territories.

Within its regulated water utility segment, American States Water serves more than 250,000 residential, commercial and industrial customers across 35 communities in six counties of California.