H2O America Plans Dividend of $0.44 (NASDAQ:HTO)

H2O America (NASDAQ:HTO) announced a dividend on Monday, January 26th, NASDAQ Dividends reports. Investors of record on Monday, February 9th will be given a dividend of 0.44 per share by the utilities provider on Monday, March 2nd. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 9th.

H2O America has increased its dividend by an average of 0.1%annually over the last three years and has raised its dividend every year for the last 57 years. H2O America has a payout ratio of 53.5% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities analysts expect H2O America to earn $2.95 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.68 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 56.9%.

H2O America Stock Down 2.2%

HTO stock traded down $1.13 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $51.26. The stock had a trading volume of 454,198 shares, compared to its average volume of 335,278. H2O America has a 1-year low of $43.75 and a 1-year high of $57.17. The company has a fifty day moving average of $49.35 and a 200 day moving average of $49.16. The company has a current ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.27, a PEG ratio of 2.67 and a beta of 0.49.

H2O America (NASDAQ:HTO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, October 27th. The utilities provider reported $1.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.17 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $240.55 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $232.27 million. H2O America had a return on equity of 7.87% and a net margin of 13.59%. On average, equities analysts expect that H2O America will post 2.75 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of H2O America

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of HTO. Amundi bought a new position in shares of H2O America during the 3rd quarter worth about $105,965,000. First Trust Advisors LP acquired a new stake in H2O America during the third quarter worth about $64,063,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP bought a new position in H2O America during the third quarter valued at about $31,737,000. Invesco Ltd. acquired a new position in H2O America in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $27,753,000. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc bought a new stake in shares of H2O America in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $27,313,000. 84.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About H2O America

SJW Group, through its subsidiaries, provides water utility and other related services in the United States. It operates in Water Utility Services and Real Estate Services segments. The company engages in the production, purchase, storage, purification, distribution, wholesale, and retail sale of water and wastewater services; and supplies groundwater from wells, surface water from watershed run-off and diversion, reclaimed water, and imported water purchased from the Santa Clara Valley Water District.