Assenagon Asset Management S.A. Sells 5,492 Shares of American Water Works Company, Inc. $AWK

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. trimmed its stake in American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK) by 19.4% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 22,798 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 5,492 shares during the quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A.’s holdings in American Water Works were worth $3,103,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Reflection Asset Management acquired a new position in shares of American Water Works during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Salomon & Ludwin LLC raised its position in shares of American Water Works by 71.7% in the fourth quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 194 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares during the period. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of American Water Works by 82.6% during the 4th quarter. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC now owns 199 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 90 shares during the last quarter. Nemes Rush Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of American Water Works during the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Finally, MV Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of American Water Works during the 4th quarter worth about $29,000. Institutional investors own 86.58% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently commented on AWK shares. Bank of America decreased their price target on shares of American Water Works from $147.00 to $134.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 21st. Barclays boosted their price objective on American Water Works from $122.00 to $124.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Monday, April 20th. UBS Group raised American Water Works from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the company from $137.00 to $140.00 in a research report on Friday, May 29th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $131.00 target price on American Water Works in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised American Water Works from a “strong sell” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Sunday, April 26th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, American Water Works presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $138.11.

American Water Works Stock Performance

NYSE AWK opened at $131.82 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $126.86 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $130.52. American Water Works Company, Inc. has a 12-month low of $120.57 and a 12-month high of $147.87. The company has a market capitalization of $25.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.37, a P/E/G ratio of 2.88 and a beta of 0.62. The company has a quick ratio of 0.34, a current ratio of 0.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16.

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 the consensus estimate of $1.10 by ($0.09). American Water Works had a return on equity of 10.20% and a net margin of 21.17%.The business had revenue of $1.21 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.17 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.05 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. American Water Works has set its FY 2026 guidance at 6.020-6.120 EPS. Analysts anticipate that American Water Works Company, Inc. will post 6.08 earnings per share for the current year.

American Water Works Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 2nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 12th were paid a dividend of $0.895 per share. This is a boost from American Water Works’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, May 12th. This represents a $3.58 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.7%. American Water Works’s dividend 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.