Consolidated Water (NASDAQ:CWCO) Hits New 52-Week High – Should You Buy?

Consolidated Water Co. Ltd. (NASDAQ:CWCO) shares reached a new 52-week high on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $39.12 and last traded at $38.59, with a volume of 39577 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $37.79.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently commented on CWCO. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Consolidated Water from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Sunday, November 16th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Consolidated Water in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $40.00.

Consolidated Water Price Performance

The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $35.70 and its 200 day simple moving average is $34.01. The company has a market capitalization of $600.24 million, a PE ratio of 38.85 and a beta of 0.48.

Consolidated Water (NASDAQ:CWCO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 10th. The utilities provider reported $0.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.24 by $0.10. Consolidated Water had a return on equity of 7.95% and a net margin of 12.90%.The firm had revenue of $35.12 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $32.90 million. On average, equities analysts forecast that Consolidated Water Co. Ltd. will post 1.27 EPS for the current year.

Consolidated Water Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 2nd will be issued a $0.14 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 2nd. This represents a $0.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.5%. Consolidated Water’s dividend payout ratio is 57.73%.

Insider Activity at Consolidated Water

In other Consolidated Water news, CEO Frederick W. Mctaggart sold 1,848 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.76, for a total value of $66,084.48. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 287,310 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,274,205.60. This trade represents a 0.64% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Wilmer F. Pergande sold 4,299 shares of Consolidated Water stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $33.75, for a total transaction of $145,091.25. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 31,884 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,076,085. This trade represents a 11.88% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 7,200 shares of company stock worth $246,978 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 6.25% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of CWCO. State of Alaska Department of Revenue grew its stake in Consolidated Water by 382.7% during the 4th quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 2,317 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $80,000 after purchasing an additional 1,837 shares in the last quarter. Perigon Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Consolidated Water in the fourth quarter worth $279,000. Ellsworth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Consolidated Water by 2.6% in the 4th quarter. Ellsworth Advisors LLC now owns 23,557 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $885,000 after acquiring an additional 607 shares during the period. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC increased its stake in shares of Consolidated Water by 9.6% in the fourth quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 18,351 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $648,000 after purchasing an additional 1,604 shares during the period. Finally, TrueMark Investments LLC acquired a new stake in Consolidated Water in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $462,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 55.16% of the company’s stock.

About Consolidated Water

Consolidated Water Co Ltd. is a developer, operator and manufacturer of water treatment and desalination systems. The company designs, engineers, builds and operates reverse-osmosis desalination plants and water treatment facilities, offering both turnkey project delivery and ongoing operations and maintenance services. Its product portfolio includes modular desalination units, water distribution systems, filtration membranes and associated equipment for potable water production.

Consolidated Water serves municipalities, resorts, commercial enterprises and private customers in the Caribbean and the southeastern United States.