American States Water (NYSE:AWR) Shares Purchased by Handelsbanken Fonder AB

Handelsbanken Fonder AB increased its stake in shares of American States Water (NYSE:AWR) by 14.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 9,023 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 1,123 shares during the period. Handelsbanken Fonder AB’s holdings in American States Water were worth $726,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Arizona State Retirement System boosted its stake in shares of American States Water by 1.4% during the 3rd quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 10,528 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $828,000 after acquiring an additional 142 shares in the last quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management boosted its position in American States Water by 3.3% during the fourth quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 6,407 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $515,000 after purchasing an additional 205 shares in the last quarter. Magellan Asset Management Ltd grew its holdings in American States Water by 1.0% in the third quarter. Magellan Asset Management Ltd now owns 28,175 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,217,000 after purchasing an additional 291 shares during the last quarter. Inspire Investing LLC grew its holdings in American States Water by 8.0% in the third quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 3,997 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $315,000 after purchasing an additional 295 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northstar Asset Management Inc. increased its position in shares of American States Water by 0.7% in the third quarter. Northstar Asset Management Inc. now owns 49,485 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $3,893,000 after buying an additional 345 shares in the last quarter. 75.24% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

American States Water Price Performance

AWR stock opened at $70.21 on Tuesday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $70.94 and its 200 day moving average price is $76.11. The firm has a market cap of $2.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.83, a PEG ratio of 3.69 and a beta of 0.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.12, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a current ratio of 1.24. American States Water has a 1 year low of $66.03 and a 1 year high of $92.85.

American States Water (NYSE:AWR) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 22nd. The utilities provider reported $0.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.53 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $125.20 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $132.00 million. American States Water had a return on equity of 13.54% and a net margin of 20.97%. The business’s revenue was down .2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.42 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that American States Water will post 3.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American States Water Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 1st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 20th were issued a dividend of $0.43 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 16th. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.45%. American States Water’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 51.04%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Thomas A. Eichelberger bought 1,400 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 28th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $71.21 per share, for a total transaction of $99,694.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 5,850 shares in the company, valued at $416,578.50. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Company insiders own 0.82% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of American States Water from $79.00 to $77.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 23rd.

American States Water Profile

American States Water Company, through its subsidiaries, provides water and electric services to residential, commercial, industrial, and other customers in the United States. It operates through three segments: Water, Electric, and Contracted Services. The company purchases, produces, distributes, and sells water, as well as distributes electricity.