KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS Acquires Shares of 109,386 American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK)

KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS acquired a new stake in American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK) in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund acquired 109,386 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $13,617,000.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of AWK. Crews Bank & Trust acquired a new stake in American Water Works in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Providence First Trust Co acquired a new stake in shares of American Water Works during the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of American Water Works during the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of American Water Works by 54.2% during the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 293 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 103 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of American Water Works during the 4th quarter worth approximately $47,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.58% of the company’s stock.

American Water Works Stock Performance

NYSE:AWK opened at $140.90 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a quick ratio of 0.35 and a current ratio of 0.39. The stock has a market capitalization of $27.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.14, a PEG ratio of 2.80 and a beta of 0.69. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $131.33 and a 200 day moving average price of $134.44. American Water Works Company, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $113.34 and a fifty-two week high of $152.07.

American Water Works (NYSE:AWK) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The utilities provider reported $1.22 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.13 by $0.09. American Water Works had a net margin of 22.44% and a return on equity of 10.29%. The company had revenue of $1.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.11 billion. Equities research analysts forecast that American Water Works Company, Inc. will post 5.71 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of American Water Works from $147.00 to $128.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of American Water Works from $133.00 to $142.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, March 13th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of American Water Works from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 19th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $141.86.

American Water Works Company Profile

American Water Works Company, Inc, through its subsidiaries, provides water and wastewater services in the United States. It offers water and wastewater services to approximately 1,700 communities in 14 states serving approximately 3.5 million active customers. The company serves residential customers; commercial customers, including food and beverage providers, commercial property developers and proprietors, and energy suppliers; fire service and private fire customers; industrial customers, such as large-scale manufacturers, mining, and production operations; public authorities comprising government buildings and other public sector facilities, such as schools and universities; and other utilities and community water and wastewater systems.