H2O America (NASDAQ:HTO) Hits New 1-Year High – Should You Buy?

H2O America (NASDAQ:HTO) shares hit a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $66.05 and last traded at $64.52, with a volume of 442520 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $65.43.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

HTO has been the topic of several analyst reports. Wall Street Zen raised shares of H2O America from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, July 4th. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of H2O America from $60.00 to $67.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. Bank of America restated a “buy” rating on shares of H2O America in a report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Weiss Ratings raised shares of H2O America from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of H2O America from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, June 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $63.33.

H2O America Price Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $2.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 7.15 and a beta of 0.35. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $59.17 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $56.95. The company has a quick ratio of 2.02, a current ratio of 2.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02.

H2O America (NASDAQ:HTO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 28th. The utilities provider reported $0.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.48 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $183.29 million during the quarter. H2O America had a net margin of 12.87% and a return on equity of 6.76%. H2O America has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.080-3.180 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that H2O America will post 2.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

H2O America Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 11th were paid a dividend of $0.44 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 11th. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.8%. H2O America’s payout ratio is 60.27%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, major shareholder Atlas Infrastructure Partners acquired 2,784 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 7th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $62.03 per share, with a total value of $172,691.52. Following the acquisition, the insider owned 4,615,265 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $286,284,887.95. This trade represents a 0.06% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.52% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On H2O America

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Quadrant Capital Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of H2O America by 194.9% in the fourth quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 525 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 347 shares during the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of H2O America by 1,020.8% in the 4th quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 594 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 541 shares during the period. Bessemer Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of H2O America by 44.6% in the first quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 661 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 204 shares during the period. Farther Finance Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of H2O America during the 4th quarter worth $40,000. Finally, IFP Advisors Inc grew its stake in shares of H2O America by 139.8% during the 4th quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 976 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $48,000 after acquiring an additional 569 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 84.29% of the company’s stock.

About H2O America

SJW Group, through its subsidiaries, provides water utility and other related services in the United States. It operates in Water Utility Services and Real Estate Services segments. The company engages in the production, purchase, storage, purification, distribution, wholesale, and retail sale of water and wastewater services; and supplies groundwater from wells, surface water from watershed run-off and diversion, reclaimed water, and imported water purchased from the Santa Clara Valley Water District.