PNC Financial Services Group Inc. Reduces Stake in American Water Works Company, Inc. $AWK

PNC Financial Services Group Inc. cut its stake in American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK) by 3.2% in the first quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 528,506 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 17,648 shares during the period. PNC Financial Services Group Inc.’s holdings in American Water Works were worth $71,924,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Salomon & Ludwin LLC boosted its holdings in American Water Works by 71.7% in the 4th quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 194 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares during the last quarter. Reflection Asset Management purchased a new position in American Water Works in the fourth quarter worth approximately $25,000. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC increased its stake in American Water Works by 82.6% during the fourth quarter. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC now owns 199 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 90 shares during the last quarter. Nemes Rush Group LLC acquired a new stake in American Water Works during the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Finally, Ascentis Independent Advisors purchased a new stake in American Water Works in the first quarter valued at $27,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.58% of the company’s stock.

American Water Works Price Performance

AWK stock opened at $134.46 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $26.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.84, a PEG ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a quick ratio of 0.34, a current ratio of 0.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16. American Water Works Company, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $120.57 and a fifty-two week high of $147.87. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $128.10 and a 200 day moving average price of $130.72.

American Water Works (NYSE:AWK) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The utilities provider reported $1.01 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.10 by ($0.09). American Water Works had a net margin of 21.17% and a return on equity of 10.20%. The company had revenue of $1.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.17 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.05 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. American Water Works has set its FY 2026 guidance at 6.020-6.120 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that American Water Works Company, Inc. will post 6.09 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Water Works Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 2nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 12th were paid a $0.895 dividend. This is an increase from American Water Works’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, May 12th. This represents a $3.58 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.7%. American Water Works’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 63.48%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on AWK. Wells Fargo & Company set a $131.00 price objective on American Water Works in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Barclays lifted their price objective on American Water Works from $124.00 to $130.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of American Water Works in a research report on Wednesday, June 24th. Truist Financial dropped their price target on shares of American Water Works from $137.00 to $130.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 29th. Finally, Bank of America reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of American Water Works in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $140.60.

American Water Works Company Profile

American Water Works Company, Inc (NYSE: AWK) is a publicly traded utility company that provides water and wastewater services in the United States. Its core business is the operation, management and maintenance of regulated water and wastewater systems that deliver potable water, collect and treat wastewater, and provide related customer services to residential, commercial and industrial customers as well as municipalities. The company’s operations include water treatment and distribution, wastewater collection and treatment, meter reading and billing, emergency repairs, and long-term infrastructure planning and capital project execution.

In addition to its regulated utility operations, American Water offers complementary nonregulated services and solutions that support system reliability and customer needs.