Erste Asset Management GmbH Reduces Stock Position in American Water Works Company, Inc. $AWK

Erste Asset Management GmbH trimmed its position in American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK) by 65.9% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 55,530 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 107,477 shares during the period. Erste Asset Management GmbH’s holdings in American Water Works were worth $7,592,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of AWK. American National Bank & Trust acquired a new position in shares of American Water Works in the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Grey Fox Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in American Water Works in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $27,000. Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. acquired a new position in American Water Works in the 3rd quarter valued at $28,000. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of American Water Works during the 2nd quarter worth $29,000. Finally, Cloud Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of American Water Works during the third quarter worth $29,000. 86.58% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

American Water Works Stock Up 1.1%

AWK opened at $135.84 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $130.06 and a 200 day moving average price of $134.23. The company has a market cap of $26.52 billion, a PE ratio of 23.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.13 and a beta of 0.77. American Water Works Company, Inc. has a 1 year low of $121.28 and a 1 year high of $155.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18, a quick ratio of 0.44 and a current ratio of 0.46.

American Water Works (NYSE:AWK) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 18th. The utilities provider reported $1.24 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.28 by ($0.04). American Water Works had a net margin of 21.61% and a return on equity of 10.38%. The business had revenue of $1.27 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.29 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.15 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 5.8% on a year-over-year basis. American Water Works has set its FY 2026 guidance at 6.020-6.120 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that American Water Works Company, Inc. will post 5.71 earnings per share for the current year.

American Water Works Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 3rd. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 10th will be given a dividend of $0.8275 per share. This represents a $3.31 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 10th. American Water Works’s dividend payout ratio is 58.17%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently commented on AWK. UBS Group set a $149.00 target price on American Water Works in a research note on Wednesday, December 17th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of American Water Works in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of American Water Works from an “underperform” rating to a “hold” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $114.00 to $124.00 in a report on Wednesday, November 5th. Barclays lowered their target price on shares of American Water Works from $134.00 to $122.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, December 17th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of American Water Works from $142.00 to $126.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 20th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, American Water Works presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $140.89.

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.