American States Water (NYSE:AWR) Shares Cross Above 200-Day Moving Average – Here’s Why

American States Water Company (NYSE:AWR)’s stock price crossed above its two hundred day moving average during trading on Thursday . The stock has a two hundred day moving average of $73.54 and traded as high as $74.74. American States Water shares last traded at $73.76, with a volume of 234,654 shares traded.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of American States Water in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $84.00.

American States Water Stock Performance

The company has a current ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88. The stock has a market cap of $2.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.09, a PEG ratio of 3.75 and a beta of 0.69. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $73.28 and its two-hundred day moving average is $73.53.

American States Water (NYSE:AWR) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 18th. The utilities provider reported $0.74 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.68 by $0.06. American States Water had a net margin of 19.82% and a return on equity of 13.10%. The company had revenue of $164.28 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $168.82 million. Analysts anticipate that American States Water Company will post 3.34 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American States Water Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 5th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 23rd will be paid a dividend of $0.504 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 23rd. This represents a $2.02 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.7%. American States Water’s dividend payout ratio is currently 59.94%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of AWR. State of Wyoming acquired a new position in shares of American States Water in the second quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd grew its position in American States Water by 610.5% in the 3rd quarter. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd now owns 540 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 464 shares during the last quarter. IFP Advisors Inc increased its stake in American States Water by 113.6% in the 4th quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 549 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 292 shares during the period. Plato Investment Management Ltd acquired a new position in American States Water in the 4th quarter valued at $45,000. Finally, Motiv8 Investments LLC purchased a new position in American States Water during the 4th quarter worth $45,000. 75.24% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.