Dimensional Fund Advisors LP Acquires 69,046 Shares of American Water Works Company, Inc. $AWK

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in shares of American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK) by 7.9% during the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 944,548 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 69,046 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP’s holdings in American Water Works were worth $128,564,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. State Street Corp lifted its stake in shares of American Water Works by 4.2% in the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 12,037,823 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,570,936,000 after purchasing an additional 486,090 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its position in American Water Works by 3,274.6% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 7,092,757 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $925,605,000 after buying an additional 6,882,575 shares during the last quarter. GQG Partners LLC increased its position in American Water Works by 64.2% during the fourth quarter. GQG Partners LLC now owns 6,493,161 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $847,361,000 after buying an additional 2,539,683 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in American Water Works by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,039,122 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $655,025,000 after buying an additional 33,359 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Amundi raised its holdings in American Water Works by 7.1% during the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 4,171,929 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $544,420,000 after buying an additional 275,511 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.58% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have weighed in on AWK. UBS Group boosted their price target on American Water Works from $140.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on American Water Works from $138.00 to $147.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 8th. Barclays raised their price objective on American Water Works from $124.00 to $130.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of American Water Works in a report on Wednesday, June 24th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company set a $131.00 target price on American Water Works in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $140.60.

Key American Water Works News

Here are the key news stories impacting American Water Works this week:

• Positive Sentiment: New Jersey acquisition expands the customer base: New Jersey American Water completed its purchase of Gordon’s Corner Water Company, adding approximately 15,300 customer connections and 20 employees. The company also plans about $25 million in infrastructure investments, supporting long-term rate-base growth and revenue potential. New Jersey American Water Completes Acquisition of Gordon’s Corner Water Company
• Positive Sentiment: Second-quarter earnings could provide a near-term catalyst: Analysts expect AWK’s results to reflect benefits from acquisitions, recently approved rates and infrastructure spending. Investors will also watch whether those gains offset higher operating costs, particularly after the company’s previous quarterly earnings missed consensus expectations. American Water to Report Q2 Earnings: What’s in Store for the Stock?
• Neutral Sentiment: Sustainability report highlights operational positioning: AWK released its tenth annual sustainability report, emphasizing environmental initiatives and community impact. The announcement reinforces the company’s regulatory and public-relations profile but is unlikely to materially change near-term earnings. American Water Releases Annual Sustainability Report
• Neutral Sentiment: Community grant program continues: Tennessee American Water opened applications for its 2026 firefighting-support grants. The program may strengthen local relationships, though its direct financial effect on AWK is limited. Tennessee American Water Accepting Applications for 2026 Firefighting Support Grant Program
• Negative Sentiment: Drought advisories could reduce water usage: Virginia and Maryland American Water asked customers to voluntarily cut nonessential consumption amid severe drought conditions. Lower usage may create modest volume and operational uncertainty, although regulated rates can cushion the earnings impact. Virginia American Water Drought Advisory Maryland American Water Drought Advisory
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst sentiment remains cautious: Brokerages assigned AWK an average “Hold” rating, while Wall Street Zen downgraded the stock to “Strong Sell,” adding pressure to investor sentiment. American Water Works Given Average Hold Rating Wall Street Zen Downgrades American Water Works

American Water Works Stock Up 0.0%

AWK stock opened at $134.68 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 0.37 and a quick ratio of 0.34. American Water Works Company, Inc. has a 52-week low of $120.57 and a 52-week high of $147.87. The company has a 50-day moving average of $128.50 and a two-hundred day moving average of $130.81. The stock has a market capitalization of $26.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.72 and a beta of 0.61.

American Water Works (NYSE:AWK) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The utilities provider reported $1.01 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.10 by ($0.09). The business had revenue of $1.21 billion during 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%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.05 earnings per share. American Water Works has set its FY 2026 guidance at 6.020-6.120 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that American Water Works Company, Inc. will post 6.09 EPS for the current year.

American Water Works Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 2nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 12th were issued a $0.895 dividend. This is an increase from American Water Works’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, May 12th. This represents a $3.58 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.7%. American Water Works’s payout ratio is 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.