LPL Financial LLC Sells 1,090 Shares of American States Water (NYSE:AWR)

LPL Financial LLC cut its position in shares of American States Water (NYSE:AWR) by 4.9% in the second quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 21,384 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 1,090 shares during the period. LPL Financial LLC’s holdings in American States Water were worth $1,860,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of AWR. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of American States Water by 1.1% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 4,608,581 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $359,239,000 after acquiring an additional 51,731 shares during the period. State Street Corp increased its holdings in shares of American States Water by 16.5% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 3,572,789 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $291,218,000 after acquiring an additional 507,209 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP increased its holdings in shares of American States Water by 5.0% in the 1st quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 1,131,978 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $100,622,000 after acquiring an additional 53,468 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in American States Water by 2.6% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 770,533 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $68,491,000 after buying an additional 19,375 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in American States Water by 4.4% during the 1st quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 699,119 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $62,145,000 after buying an additional 29,272 shares during the last quarter. 74.67% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, StockNews.com downgraded American States Water from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 7th.

American States Water Stock Performance

Shares of American States Water stock opened at $77.50 on Monday. American States Water has a one year low of $75.20 and a one year high of $100.50. The company has a market cap of $2.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.34, a PEG ratio of 4.16 and a beta of 0.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.05, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a current ratio of 0.98. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $79.87 and its 200 day moving average price is $85.05.

American States Water (NYSE:AWR) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, November 7th. The utilities provider reported $0.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.82 by $0.03. American States Water had a return on equity of 13.60% and a net margin of 20.66%. The company had revenue of $151.70 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $152.00 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.69 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that American States Water will post 2.96 EPS for the current year.

American States Water Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 15th will be issued a $0.43 dividend. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.22%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 14th. American States Water’s payout ratio is currently 51.81%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Thomas A. Eichelberger purchased 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 9th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $77.94 per share, for a total transaction of $77,940.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 4,448 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $346,677.12. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.82% of the company’s stock.

About American States Water

American States Water Company, through its subsidiaries, provides water and electric services to residential, commercial, industrial, and other customers in the United States. It operates through three segments: Water, Electric, and Contracted Services. The company purchases, produces, distributes, and sells water, as well as distributes electricity.