Middlesex Water Company $MSEX Stock Holdings Trimmed by Comerica Bank

Comerica Bank lowered its holdings in shares of Middlesex Water Company (NASDAQ:MSEX) by 15.4% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 6,376 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 1,161 shares during the period. Comerica Bank’s holdings in Middlesex Water were worth $409,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. CX Institutional bought a new stake in Middlesex Water during the 1st quarter valued at $38,000. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake in Middlesex Water by 128.3% during the 1st quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 662 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 372 shares in the last quarter. Costello Asset Management INC bought a new stake in Middlesex Water during the 1st quarter valued at $50,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in Middlesex Water during the 1st quarter valued at $203,000. Finally, Crestwood Advisors Group LLC bought a new stake in Middlesex Water during the 1st quarter valued at $208,000. Institutional investors own 79.52% of the company’s stock.

Middlesex Water Stock Down 2.0%

Shares of Middlesex Water stock opened at $53.10 on Tuesday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $53.62 and its 200-day moving average is $57.30. The firm has a market capitalization of $956.86 million, a PE ratio of 21.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.74 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a quick ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 0.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. Middlesex Water Company has a 12-month low of $48.18 and a 12-month high of $70.73.

Middlesex Water (NASDAQ:MSEX) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The utilities provider reported $0.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.68 by ($0.08). The company had revenue of $49.32 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $52.60 million. Middlesex Water had a return on equity of 9.67% and a net margin of 22.15%. Equities analysts anticipate that Middlesex Water Company will post 2.34 earnings per share for the current year.

Middlesex Water Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 2nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 15th were issued a dividend of $0.34 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 15th. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.6%. Middlesex Water’s payout ratio is currently 56.20%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently commented on MSEX. Janney Montgomery Scott raised Middlesex Water from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $66.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Monday, May 12th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Middlesex Water from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Middlesex Water presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $61.00.

Middlesex Water Profile

Middlesex Water Company owns and operates regulated water utility and wastewater systems. It operates in Regulated and Non-Regulated segments. The Regulated segment collects, treats, and distributes water on a retail and wholesale basis to residential, commercial, industrial, and fire protection customers, as well as provides regulated wastewater systems in New Jersey and Delaware.