ProShare Advisors LLC Buys 4,932 Shares of American Water Works Company, Inc. $AWK

ProShare Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK) by 9.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 55,270 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,932 shares during the quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC’s holdings in American Water Works were worth $7,213,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. HighTower Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of American Water Works by 4.9% during the fourth quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 570,290 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $74,423,000 after acquiring an additional 26,382 shares during the last quarter. Entrust Financial LLC bought a new position in shares of American Water Works during the fourth quarter worth $98,000. Intrua Financial LLC boosted its position in shares of American Water Works by 7.4% during the fourth quarter. Intrua Financial LLC now owns 3,436 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $448,000 after acquiring an additional 237 shares during the last quarter. Sapient Capital LLC boosted its position in shares of American Water Works by 4.8% during the fourth quarter. Sapient Capital LLC now owns 2,254 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $296,000 after acquiring an additional 104 shares during the last quarter. Finally, North Dakota State Investment Board bought a new position in shares of American Water Works during the fourth quarter worth $872,000. Institutional investors own 86.58% of the company’s stock.

American Water Works Price Performance

American Water Works stock opened at $123.89 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $24.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.97, a PEG ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.64. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $132.62 and its 200 day moving average is $131.31. 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 52-week low of $121.28 and a 52-week high of $147.87.

American Water Works (NYSE:AWK) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The utilities provider reported $1.01 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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 business had revenue of $1.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.17 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.05 EPS. American Water Works’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. American Water Works has set its FY 2026 guidance at 6.020-6.120 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that American Water Works Company, Inc. will post 6.09 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Water Works Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 2nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 12th will be given a dividend of $0.895 per share. This represents a $3.58 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.9%. This is a positive change from American Water Works’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 12th. American Water Works’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 63.48%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AWK has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. UBS Group decreased their price target on shares of American Water Works from $149.00 to $137.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of American Water Works in a research note on Friday, March 27th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of American Water Works from a “strong sell” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Sunday, April 26th. Truist Financial initiated coverage on shares of American Water Works in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. They set a “hold” rating and a $137.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company set a $131.00 price target on shares of American Water Works in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $138.56.

About American Water Works

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.