Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. Grows Stake in American States Water (NYSE:AWR)

Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. boosted its position in American States Water (NYSE:AWR) by 4.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 20,187 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 820 shares during the period. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. owned about 0.05% of American States Water worth $1,623,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of AWR. Quarry LP purchased a new position in American States Water during the first quarter worth $30,000. Dark Forest Capital Management LP increased its position in American States Water by 1,000.0% during the first quarter. Dark Forest Capital Management LP now owns 363 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 330 shares in the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC increased its position in American States Water by 900.0% during the first quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 380 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 342 shares in the last quarter. Column Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in American States Water during the third quarter worth $35,000. Finally, Anchor Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in American States Water during the fourth quarter worth $48,000. 75.24% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at American States Water

In other American States Water news, Director Thomas A. Eichelberger acquired 1,400 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 28th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $71.21 per share, for a total transaction of $99,694.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 5,850 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $416,578.50. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.82% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on American States Water from $79.00 to $77.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 23rd.

American States Water Price Performance

AWR stock opened at $69.25 on Friday. American States Water has a 52-week low of $66.03 and a 52-week high of $92.85. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $71.66 and its 200-day simple moving average is $76.52. The company has a quick ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.12. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.58 and a beta of 0.43.

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

American States Water Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed 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. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.48%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 16th. American States Water’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 51.04%.

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.