Zacks Research Brokers Decrease Earnings Estimates for AWK

American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK) – Zacks Research dropped their Q2 2025 EPS estimates for American Water Works in a report released on Monday, May 19th. Zacks Research analyst R. Department now anticipates that the utilities provider will post earnings per share of $1.48 for the quarter, down from their prior forecast of $1.50. The consensus estimate for American Water Works’ current full-year earnings is $5.71 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for American Water Works’ Q4 2025 earnings at $1.27 EPS, Q1 2026 earnings at $1.14 EPS, Q2 2026 earnings at $1.68 EPS, Q3 2026 earnings at $2.04 EPS, FY2026 earnings at $6.15 EPS, Q1 2027 earnings at $1.20 EPS and FY2027 earnings at $6.48 EPS.

A number of other analysts have also commented on AWK. StockNews.com lowered shares of American Water Works from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of American Water Works from $142.00 to $147.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. UBS Group lowered shares of American Water Works from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, April 25th. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on shares of American Water Works from $139.00 to $148.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Barclays began coverage on shares of American Water Works in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. They set an “underweight” rating and a $138.00 target price for the company. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, American Water Works presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $143.22.

American Water Works Stock Performance

Shares of American Water Works stock opened at $143.43 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a current ratio of 0.39 and a quick ratio of 0.35. The firm has a market cap of $27.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.61, a P/E/G ratio of 2.80 and a beta of 0.73. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $144.32 and a 200 day simple moving average of $135.14. American Water Works has a fifty-two week low of $118.74 and a fifty-two week high of $155.50.

American Water Works (NYSE:AWK) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The utilities provider reported $1.05 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.06 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $1.14 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.09 billion. American Water Works had a net margin of 22.44% and a return on equity of 10.29%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.95 EPS.

American Water Works Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 3rd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 13th will be given a dividend of $0.8275 per share. This represents a $3.31 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.31%. This is a boost from American Water Works’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.77. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 13th. American Water Works’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 60.29%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On American Water Works

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Focus Partners Wealth lifted its position in American Water Works by 0.5% in the 1st quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 27,681 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $4,084,000 after acquiring an additional 134 shares in the last quarter. Flaharty Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in American Water Works in the 1st quarter valued at $30,000. Bayforest Capital Ltd lifted its position in American Water Works by 1,720.7% in the 1st quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd now owns 1,056 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $156,000 after acquiring an additional 998 shares in the last quarter. Woodline Partners LP lifted its position in American Water Works by 40.7% in the 1st quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 16,466 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,429,000 after acquiring an additional 4,762 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Yaupon Capital Management LP bought a new stake in American Water Works in the 1st quarter valued at $13,267,000. 86.58% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.