American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK) Given Average Rating of “Hold” by Brokerages

American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK) has earned a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the eleven ratings firms that are covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12 month price target among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $140.60.

AWK has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company set a $131.00 price objective on American Water Works in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of American Water Works from a “sell” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Sunday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of American Water Works from $138.00 to $147.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 8th. Truist Financial lowered 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 report on Friday, May 29th. Finally, Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of American Water Works from $124.00 to $130.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its holdings in shares of American Water Works by 6.6% during the 2nd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,199 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $158,000 after buying an additional 74 shares during the period. SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in American Water Works by 3.5% in the 4th quarter. SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,269 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $289,000 after buying an additional 77 shares during the last quarter. Peddock Capital Advisors LLC raised its holdings in American Water Works by 2.9% in the 4th quarter. Peddock Capital Advisors LLC now owns 2,824 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $369,000 after acquiring an additional 79 shares during the period. Salomon & Ludwin LLC raised 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 acquiring an additional 81 shares during the period. Finally, Faithward Advisors LLC lifted its position in American Water Works by 5.4% during the third quarter. Faithward Advisors LLC now owns 1,602 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $223,000 after acquiring an additional 82 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.58% of the company’s stock.

American Water Works Trading Up 0.3%

Shares of American Water Works stock opened at $134.80 on Friday. American Water Works has a 1 year low of $120.57 and a 1 year high of $147.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 0.37 and a quick ratio of 0.34. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $128.31 and a 200 day moving average price of $130.75. The company has a market capitalization of $26.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.90, a P/E/G ratio of 2.72 and a beta of 0.61.

American Water Works (NYSE:AWK) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The utilities provider reported $1.01 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.10 by ($0.09). The company had revenue of $1.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.17 billion. American Water Works had a net margin of 21.17% and a return on equity of 10.20%. American Water Works’s quarterly revenue was up 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.05 EPS. American Water Works has set its FY 2026 guidance at 6.020-6.120 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that American Water Works will post 6.09 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Water Works Increases Dividend

The company 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 represents a $3.58 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, May 12th. This is an increase from American Water Works’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. American Water Works’s dividend payout ratio is presently 63.48%.

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.