Prudential PLC Acquires 11,357 Shares of American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK)

Prudential PLC raised its holdings in shares of American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK) by 186.4% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 17,450 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 11,357 shares during the quarter. Prudential PLC’s holdings in American Water Works were worth $2,172,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in AWK. Arete Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in American Water Works by 6.8% in the fourth quarter. Arete Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,206 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $274,000 after purchasing an additional 141 shares during the last quarter. OneAscent Financial Services LLC grew its position in shares of American Water Works by 14.4% during the 4th quarter. OneAscent Financial Services LLC now owns 1,709 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $213,000 after buying an additional 215 shares during the period. Bryce Point Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of American Water Works in the 4th quarter valued at about $493,000. Lokken Investment Group LLC raised its position in shares of American Water Works by 2.0% in the 4th quarter. Lokken Investment Group LLC now owns 8,318 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,036,000 after acquiring an additional 164 shares during the period. Finally, Boston Family Office LLC boosted its stake in American Water Works by 19.1% during the 4th quarter. Boston Family Office LLC now owns 7,066 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $880,000 after acquiring an additional 1,131 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.58% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have commented on AWK. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of American Water Works from $147.00 to $128.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of American Water Works from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on American Water Works from $133.00 to $142.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, March 13th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $141.86.

American Water Works Price Performance

Shares of NYSE AWK opened at $147.36 on Monday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $135.56 and a 200 day moving average price of $134.28. The firm has a market cap of $28.74 billion, a PE ratio of 27.34, a PEG ratio of 2.80 and a beta of 0.68. The company has a current ratio of 0.39, a quick ratio of 0.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21. American Water Works Company, Inc. has a 1-year low of $113.34 and a 1-year high of $155.50.

American Water Works (NYSE:AWK) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 19th. The utilities provider reported $1.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.13 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $1.20 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.11 billion. American Water Works had a return on equity of 10.29% and a net margin of 22.44%. Research analysts predict that American Water Works Company, Inc. will post 5.71 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Water Works 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.