Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp. (NYSE:AQN) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp. (NYSE:AQN) have earned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the twelve analysts that are covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 12-month price target among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $6.70.

A number of research firms have weighed in on AQN. National Bank Financial upgraded Algonquin Power & Utilities from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $7.50 price target for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. Raymond James Financial raised their target price on shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities from $6.00 to $6.50 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, October 24th. Desjardins boosted their target price on shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities from $6.25 to $6.75 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 9th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, November 1st. Finally, Scotiabank raised shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities from a “sector perform” rating to a “sector outperform” rating and set a $6.50 price objective for the company in a research report on Tuesday, December 16th.

Institutional Trading of Algonquin Power & Utilities

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its stake in Algonquin Power & Utilities by 65.0% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 12,205,756 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $62,738,000 after acquiring an additional 4,808,539 shares during the period. Ballentine Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities by 10.6% in the second quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 23,484 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $135,000 after purchasing an additional 2,242 shares during the last quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio raised its position in shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities by 59.9% in the second quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 2,066,247 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $11,834,000 after purchasing an additional 774,061 shares during the period. Hennessy Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities by 46.1% during the 2nd quarter. Hennessy Advisors Inc. now owns 166,064 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $952,000 after buying an additional 52,400 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities by 11.8% during the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC now owns 76,803 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $440,000 after buying an additional 8,103 shares during the period. 62.28% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Algonquin Power & Utilities Stock Down 0.5%

Algonquin Power & Utilities stock opened at $6.37 on Monday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $6.15 and a 200 day simple moving average of $5.91. The company has a current ratio of 1.23, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26. Algonquin Power & Utilities has a 1-year low of $4.26 and a 1-year high of $6.62. The company has a market cap of $4.89 billion, a P/E ratio of -159.09 and a beta of 0.75.

Algonquin Power & Utilities (NYSE:AQN) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, November 7th. The utilities provider reported $0.09 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.06 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $600.80 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $596.67 million. Algonquin Power & Utilities had a negative net margin of 1.11% and a positive return on equity of 5.14%. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.08 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Algonquin Power & Utilities will post 0.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Algonquin Power & Utilities Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 15th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, December 31st were given a dividend of $0.065 per share. This represents a $0.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, December 31st. Algonquin Power & Utilities’s payout ratio is -650.00%.

Algonquin Power & Utilities Company Profile

Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp (NYSE: AQN) is a diversified generation, transmission and distribution utility company headquartered in Oakville, Ontario. Established in 1988, the firm operates through two primary business segments: Regulated Utilities and Renewable Energy. Its Regulated Utilities segment comprises electric, natural gas and water distribution networks serving residential, commercial and industrial customers across North America, while its Renewable Energy portfolio includes hydroelectric, solar, wind and thermal generation facilities.

The company’s renewable energy assets span multiple jurisdictions in Canada and the United States, reflecting its strategy to expand clean power capacity in regions with supportive regulatory frameworks.