Consolidated Water (NASDAQ:CWCO) Reaches New 1-Year High – Should You Buy?

Consolidated Water Co. Ltd. (NASDAQ:CWCO)’s share price reached a new 52-week high on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $39.12 and last traded at $38.59, with a volume of 39577 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $37.79.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on CWCO. Wall Street Zen raised Consolidated Water from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Sunday, November 16th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Consolidated Water in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to MarketBeat.com, Consolidated Water presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $40.00.

Consolidated Water Price Performance

The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $35.47 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $33.91. The firm has a market cap of $608.21 million, a P/E ratio of 39.36 and a beta of 0.48.

Consolidated Water (NASDAQ:CWCO) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 10th. The utilities provider reported $0.34 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.24 by $0.10. Consolidated Water had a net margin of 12.90% and a return on equity of 7.95%. The business had revenue of $35.12 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $32.90 million. Equities research analysts anticipate that Consolidated Water Co. Ltd. will post 1.27 earnings per share for the current year.

Consolidated Water Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 2nd will be paid a dividend of $0.14 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 2nd. This represents a $0.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.5%. Consolidated Water’s payout ratio is currently 57.73%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Consolidated Water

In other news, CEO Frederick W. Mctaggart sold 1,848 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.76, for a total value of $66,084.48. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 287,310 shares in the company, valued at $10,274,205.60. This trade represents a 0.64% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Wilmer F. Pergande sold 4,299 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $33.75, for a total value of $145,091.25. Following the sale, the director owned 31,884 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,076,085. This trade represents a 11.88% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 7,200 shares of company stock worth $246,978 over the last three months. Insiders own 6.25% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Quarry LP purchased a new stake in shares of Consolidated Water in the 3rd quarter worth $40,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC increased its position in Consolidated Water by 335.7% in the second quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 1,512 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $45,000 after buying an additional 1,165 shares in the last quarter. CWM LLC lifted its position in shares of Consolidated Water by 67.5% during the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 2,045 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $72,000 after buying an additional 824 shares in the last quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC purchased a new position in shares of Consolidated Water during the 3rd quarter valued at about $80,000. Finally, State of Alaska Department of Revenue grew its stake in shares of Consolidated Water by 382.7% during the 4th quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 2,317 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $80,000 after acquiring an additional 1,837 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 55.16% of the company’s stock.

Consolidated Water Company Profile

Consolidated Water Co Ltd. is a developer, operator and manufacturer of water treatment and desalination systems. The company designs, engineers, builds and operates reverse-osmosis desalination plants and water treatment facilities, offering both turnkey project delivery and ongoing operations and maintenance services. Its product portfolio includes modular desalination units, water distribution systems, filtration membranes and associated equipment for potable water production.

Consolidated Water serves municipalities, resorts, commercial enterprises and private customers in the Caribbean and the southeastern United States.