Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI Invests $736,000 in American Water Works Company, Inc. $AWK

Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI acquired a new stake in shares of American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 5,596 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $736,000.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Nuance Investments LLC bought a new stake in American Water Works during the second quarter worth approximately $4,733,000. MidFirst Bank bought a new position in shares of American Water Works in the second quarter valued at approximately $44,000. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of American Water Works in the second quarter worth $2,712,173,000. Pallas Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of American Water Works during the 2nd quarter worth $566,000. Finally, Deutsche Bank AG bought a new stake in shares of American Water Works during the 2nd quarter worth $212,594,000. 86.58% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

American Water Works Trading Up 1.6%

Shares of AWK stock opened at $138.49 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $27.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.75 and a beta of 0.60. American Water Works Company, Inc. has a 1 year low of $120.57 and a 1 year high of $147.87. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $132.51 and its 200 day simple moving average is $131.41. The company has a current ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 0.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.20.

American Water Works (NYSE:AWK) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The utilities provider reported $1.61 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.53 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $1.35 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.33 billion. American Water Works had a net margin of 21.35% and a return on equity of 10.20%. The business’s revenue was up 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.48 EPS. American Water Works has set its FY 2026 guidance at 6.020-6.120 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that American Water Works Company, Inc. will post 6.09 EPS for the current year.

American Water Works Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 11th will be paid a $0.895 dividend. This represents a $3.58 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, August 11th. American Water Works’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 62.05%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AWK has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of American Water Works in a research note on Wednesday, June 24th. Truist Financial set a $139.00 price target on shares of American Water Works in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. Mizuho lifted their price objective on American Water Works from $130.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, July 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on American Water Works from $138.00 to $147.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 8th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded American Water Works from a “strong sell” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $138.78.

About American Water Works

American Water Works Company, Inc (NYSE: AWK) is a publicly traded utility company that provides water and wastewater services in the United States. Its core business is the operation, management and maintenance of regulated water and wastewater systems that deliver potable water, collect and treat wastewater, and provide related customer services to residential, commercial and industrial customers as well as municipalities. The company’s operations include water treatment and distribution, wastewater collection and treatment, meter reading and billing, emergency repairs, and long-term infrastructure planning and capital project execution.

In addition to its regulated utility operations, American Water offers complementary nonregulated services and solutions that support system reliability and customer needs.