American Water Works (NYSE:AWK) Research Coverage Started at Barclays

Barclays initiated coverage on shares of American Water Works (NYSE:AWK) in a research note released on Tuesday morning, MarketBeat.com reports. The firm issued an underweight rating and a $138.00 price target on the utilities provider’s stock.

Several other equities analysts have also commented on the company. StockNews.com raised American Water Works from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, April 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on American Water Works from $147.00 to $128.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on American Water Works from $133.00 to $142.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 13th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $142.00.

American Water Works Price Performance

Shares of AWK opened at $145.97 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $28.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.08, a PEG ratio of 2.80 and a beta of 0.68. American Water Works has a fifty-two week low of $118.74 and a fifty-two week high of $155.50. The company has a quick ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 0.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $141.94 and its 200 day moving average price is $134.51.

American Water Works (NYSE:AWK) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 19th. The utilities provider reported $1.22 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.13 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $1.20 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.11 billion. American Water Works had a return on equity of 10.29% and a net margin of 22.44%. On average, research analysts forecast that American Water Works will post 5.71 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On American Water Works

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Barclays PLC raised its holdings in shares of American Water Works by 1.0% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 376,348 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $55,037,000 after buying an additional 3,560 shares during the last quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in American Water Works during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $716,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB lifted its position in American Water Works by 4.3% during the 3rd quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 54,677 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $7,996,000 after acquiring an additional 2,269 shares during the period. Synovus Financial Corp purchased a new position in shares of American Water Works in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $221,000. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. increased its holdings in shares of American Water Works by 3.0% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,034,221 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $145,170,000 after purchasing an additional 29,961 shares during the period. 86.58% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

American Water Works Company Profile

American Water Works Company, Inc, through its subsidiaries, provides water and wastewater services in the United States. It offers water and wastewater services to approximately 1,700 communities in 14 states serving approximately 3.5 million active customers. The company serves residential customers; commercial customers, including food and beverage providers, commercial property developers and proprietors, and energy suppliers; fire service and private fire customers; industrial customers, such as large-scale manufacturers, mining, and production operations; public authorities comprising government buildings and other public sector facilities, such as schools and universities; and other utilities and community water and wastewater systems.