Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp. (NYSE:AQN) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Hold” from Analysts

Shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp. (NYSE:AQN) have earned an average recommendation of “Hold” from the eleven research firms that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $6.23.

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $6.00 price objective on shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities in a report on Friday, October 11th. Scotiabank decreased their price target on Algonquin Power & Utilities from $6.50 to $5.75 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, August 13th. Desjardins dropped their price objective on Algonquin Power & Utilities from $5.50 to $5.25 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, August 12th. Janney Montgomery Scott initiated coverage on Algonquin Power & Utilities in a report on Thursday, September 5th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $6.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, National Bank Financial upgraded Algonquin Power & Utilities from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, August 12th.

Algonquin Power & Utilities Price Performance

NYSE:AQN opened at $4.97 on Friday. Algonquin Power & Utilities has a 52 week low of $4.88 and a 52 week high of $6.79. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $5.29 and its two-hundred day moving average is $5.82. The company has a market capitalization of $3.81 billion, a P/E ratio of -10.13 and a beta of 0.66. The company has a quick ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.08.

Algonquin Power & Utilities (NYSE:AQN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, August 9th. The utilities provider reported $0.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.08 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $598.60 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $635.95 million. Algonquin Power & Utilities had a net margin of 4.70% and a return on equity of 5.36%. Algonquin Power & Utilities’s revenue was down 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.08 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Algonquin Power & Utilities will post 0.43 EPS for the current year.

Algonquin Power & Utilities Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 30th were issued a dividend of $0.065 per share. This represents a $0.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.24%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 30th. Algonquin Power & Utilities’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -53.06%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Algonquin Power & Utilities

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its position in shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities by 320.6% in the 2nd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 7,273,228 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $42,633,000 after buying an additional 5,544,063 shares during the last quarter. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp grew its position in shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities by 156.0% during the second quarter. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp now owns 8,905,059 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $52,341,000 after acquiring an additional 5,426,523 shares during the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities by 851.0% in the 1st quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 3,765,026 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $23,797,000 after acquiring an additional 3,369,124 shares during the period. Davidson Kempner Capital Management LP boosted its stake in Algonquin Power & Utilities by 79.8% during the 2nd quarter. Davidson Kempner Capital Management LP now owns 4,634,250 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $27,157,000 after purchasing an additional 2,056,534 shares during the period. Finally, Capital Research Global Investors purchased a new position in Algonquin Power & Utilities during the 1st quarter worth $9,924,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.28% of the company’s stock.

Algonquin Power & Utilities Company Profile

Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp. operates in the power and utility industries in the United States, Canada, and other regions. The company operates in two segments, Regulated Services Group and Renewable Energy Group. The company primarily owns and operates a regulated electric, water distribution and wastewater collection, and natural gas utility systems and transmission operations.