Wells Fargo & Company Issues Pessimistic Forecast for American Water Works (NYSE:AWK) Stock Price

American Water Works (NYSE:AWK) had its price objective lowered by investment analysts at Wells Fargo & Company from $142.00 to $126.00 in a research report issued on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “equal weight” rating on the utilities provider’s stock. Wells Fargo & Company‘s price target points to a potential downside of 3.80% from the company’s current price.

AWK has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Barclays cut their price target on shares of American Water Works from $134.00 to $122.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, December 17th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded American Water Works from an “underperform” rating to a “hold” rating and raised their target price for the company from $114.00 to $124.00 in a report on Wednesday, November 5th. UBS Group set a $149.00 price target on American Water Works in a research note on Wednesday, December 17th. Bank of America raised American Water Works from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $117.00 to $139.00 in a report on Monday, January 12th. Finally, TD Cowen began coverage on American Water Works in a research note on Thursday, October 16th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $155.00 price objective on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $139.60.

American Water Works Stock Down 0.3%

AWK opened at $130.98 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $25.56 billion, a PE ratio of 23.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.05 and a beta of 0.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 0.42 and a quick ratio of 0.39. American Water Works has a fifty-two week low of $120.63 and a fifty-two week high of $155.50. The business has a 50-day moving average of $130.65 and a 200-day moving average of $136.58.

American Water Works (NYSE:AWK) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 29th. The utilities provider reported $1.94 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.90 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $1.45 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.36 billion. American Water Works had a return on equity of 10.48% and a net margin of 21.93%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 9.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.80 EPS. American Water Works has set its FY 2025 guidance at 5.700-5.750 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 6.020-6.120 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that American Water Works will post 5.71 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. American National Bank & Trust acquired a new stake in shares of American Water Works in the third quarter worth $26,000. Grey Fox Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in American Water Works during the 3rd quarter valued at $27,000. Concord Wealth Partners bought a new stake in American Water Works in the 2nd quarter valued at $28,000. Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. acquired a new stake in American Water Works in the 3rd quarter worth $28,000. Finally, Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of American Water Works during the 2nd quarter worth about $29,000. 86.58% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.