American Water Works (NYSE:AWK) Price Target Raised to $140.00 at Mizuho

American Water Works (NYSE:AWK) had its price target upped by Mizuho from $130.00 to $140.00 in a research note published on Friday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have a neutral rating on the utilities provider’s stock.

Several other research firms have also weighed in on AWK. Truist Financial reduced their price objective on shares of American Water Works from $137.00 to $130.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 29th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of American Water Works in a report on Wednesday, June 24th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of American Water Works from a “sell” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Sunday, July 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of American Water Works from $138.00 to $147.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 8th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of American Water Works from $140.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 2nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $140.10.

American Water Works Trading Down 1.7%

Shares of American Water Works stock opened at $134.47 on Friday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $129.54 and a 200-day simple moving average of $131.04. American Water Works has a fifty-two week low of $120.57 and a fifty-two week high of $147.87. The firm has a market cap of $26.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a quick ratio of 0.34, a current ratio of 0.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.20.

American Water Works (NYSE:AWK) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The utilities provider reported $1.61 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.53 by $0.08. American Water Works had a return on equity of 10.20% and a net margin of 21.35%.The firm had revenue of $1.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.33 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.48 earnings per share. American Water Works’s revenue was up 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. American Water Works has set its FY 2026 guidance at 6.020-6.120 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that American Water Works will post 6.09 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Water Works Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 11th will be paid a $0.895 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 11th. This represents a $3.58 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.7%. American Water Works’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 62.05%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On American Water Works

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Reflection Asset Management purchased a new stake in American Water Works in the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Salomon & Ludwin LLC grew its stake in American Water Works by 71.7% during the 4th quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 194 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 81 shares in the last quarter. Ascentis Independent Advisors purchased a new position in American Water Works during the 1st quarter valued at about $27,000. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of American Water Works by 82.6% in the 4th quarter. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC now owns 199 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares during the period. Finally, Nemes Rush Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of American Water Works in the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. 86.58% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.