H2O America (NASDAQ:HTO) Rating Lowered to “Strong Sell” at Zacks Research

H2O America (NASDAQ:HTO) was downgraded by stock analysts at Zacks Research from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report issued on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. Citigroup raised shares of H2O America to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 9th. Barclays decreased their price objective on H2O America from $63.00 to $60.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 15th. Robert W. Baird initiated coverage on shares of H2O America in a research report on Friday, March 13th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $67.00 price target for the company. Bank of America restated a “buy” rating on shares of H2O America in a report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Finally, UBS Group set a $61.00 price objective on shares of H2O America in a report on Friday, January 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $61.83.

H2O America Trading Up 1.2%

Shares of HTO stock opened at $57.98 on Monday. H2O America has a fifty-two week low of $43.75 and a fifty-two week high of $61.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 2.02 and a current ratio of 2.02. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $57.80 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $52.62. The company has a market cap of $2.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.86, a PEG ratio of 3.78 and a beta of 0.35.

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

Insider Transactions at H2O America

In other H2O America news, major shareholder Atlas Infrastructure Partners purchased 50,385 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 10th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $59.06 per share, for a total transaction of $2,975,738.10. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider owned 4,582,469 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $270,640,619.14. The trade was a 1.11% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, major shareholder Atlas Holdings Ltd Gip bought 50,385 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 10th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $59.06 per share, with a total value of $2,975,738.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 4,582,469 shares in the company, valued at approximately $270,640,619.14. The trade was a 1.11% increase in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Corporate insiders own 0.52% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On H2O America

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Quadrant Capital Group LLC grew its holdings in H2O America by 194.9% during 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 period. Parallel Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of H2O America by 1,020.8% in the fourth quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 594 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 541 shares during the period. Hughes Financial Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of H2O America in the third quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of H2O America during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Finally, IFP Advisors Inc lifted 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 valued at $48,000 after buying an additional 569 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other 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.