Assenagon Asset Management S.A. Boosts Stock Position in Artesian Resources Corporation $ARTNA

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its stake in Artesian Resources Corporation (NASDAQ:ARTNA) by 372.4% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 45,310 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 35,718 shares during the quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. owned about 0.44% of Artesian Resources worth $1,443,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Quarry LP acquired a new position in Artesian Resources during the third quarter worth $38,000. Osaic Holdings Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Artesian Resources by 44.6% during the 2nd quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 1,632 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $55,000 after acquiring an additional 503 shares during the period. Copeland Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Artesian Resources during the 4th quarter worth $63,000. Jones Financial Companies Lllp raised its holdings in shares of Artesian Resources by 985.2% during the 1st quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 2,713 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $89,000 after acquiring an additional 2,463 shares during the period. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its position in shares of Artesian Resources by 422.1% during the 2nd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 3,717 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $125,000 after acquiring an additional 3,005 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.37% of the company’s stock.

Artesian Resources Trading Down 0.1%

ARTNA opened at $33.94 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $350.26 million, a PE ratio of 15.02 and a beta of 0.34. Artesian Resources Corporation has a one year low of $30.50 and a one year high of $34.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a current ratio of 1.01. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $32.39 and its 200 day moving average price is $32.55.

Artesian Resources (NASDAQ:ARTNA) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The utilities provider reported $0.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.48 by $0.09. Artesian Resources had a return on equity of 9.61% and a net margin of 20.86%.The company had revenue of $27.77 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $27.00 million.

Artesian Resources Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 29th. Investors of record on Friday, May 15th were issued a $0.3199 dividend. This is an increase from Artesian Resources’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 15th. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.8%. Artesian Resources’s payout ratio is presently 56.64%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Weiss Ratings cut shares of Artesian Resources from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold”.

Artesian Resources Profile

Artesian Resources Corporation (NASDAQ: ARTNA) is a publicly traded water and wastewater utility company headquartered in Wilmington, Delaware. The company provides regulated water distribution and wastewater collection services to residential, commercial and industrial customers. Through its operating subsidiaries, Artesian is subject to oversight by public utility commissions in Delaware, Maryland and Pennsylvania, ensuring the delivery of safe, high-quality water in compliance with state and federal standards.

Traced back to its roots as the Artesian Water Company founded in 1905, the organization has expanded its footprint through a combination of organic growth and strategic acquisitions.