American States Water (NYSE:AWR) Stock Crosses Above 200 Day Moving Average – Here’s Why

Shares of American States Water Company (NYSE:AWR) crossed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Thursday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of $74.86 and traded as high as $79.30. American States Water shares last traded at $76.7880, with a volume of 647,312 shares.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have commented on AWR. Zacks Research downgraded shares of American States Water from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of American States Water in a report on Monday, April 20th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold”.

American States Water Stock Down 2.2%

The company has a quick ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 1.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86. The company has a market capitalization of $3.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.39, a P/E/G ratio of 3.05 and a beta of 0.60. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $77.14 and its 200-day moving average price is $74.86.

American States Water (NYSE:AWR) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.76 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.77 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $169.19 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $157.02 million. American States Water had a return on equity of 13.06% and a net margin of 19.66%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.70 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that American States Water Company will post 3.71 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American States Water Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 2nd. Investors of record on Monday, May 18th were given a $0.504 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 18th. This represents a $2.02 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.6%. American States Water’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 58.89%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, SVP Paul J. Rowley sold 1,304 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $76.05, for a total value of $99,169.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 6,520 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $495,846. This trade represents a 16.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Anne M. Holloway sold 662 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.58, for a total transaction of $50,033.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 39,418 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,979,212.44. This trade represents a 1.65% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.90% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its position in American States Water by 6.2% in the second quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 2,563 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $196,000 after purchasing an additional 150 shares in the last quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC increased its holdings in American States Water by 4.7% during the fourth quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC now owns 3,339 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $242,000 after buying an additional 150 shares during the last quarter. US Bancorp DE increased its holdings in American States Water by 2.1% during the third quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 7,663 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $562,000 after buying an additional 159 shares during the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC increased its holdings in American States Water by 5.6% during the fourth quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 3,033 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $220,000 after buying an additional 161 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund increased its holdings in American States Water by 2.3% during the fourth quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 8,849 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $641,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 75.24% of the company’s stock.

American States Water Company Profile

American States Water Company (NYSE: AWR), founded in 1929 and headquartered in San Dimas, California, is a publicly traded utility holding company. The company operates primarily through two regulated segments—water and electric utilities—and provides non-regulated water system services. Over its history, American States Water has expanded its footprint through strategic acquisitions and organic growth, positioning itself as a reliable provider of essential services in its core territories.

Within its regulated water utility segment, American States Water serves more than 250,000 residential, commercial and industrial customers across 35 communities in six counties of California.