Short Interest in Global Water Resources, Inc. (NASDAQ:GWRS) Declines By 26.6%

Global Water Resources, Inc. (NASDAQ:GWRS) was the recipient of a significant decline in short interest in December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totaling 155,180 shares, a decline of 26.6% from the November 30th total of 211,291 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 110,775 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 1.4 days. Currently, 1.2% of the company’s shares are sold short. Currently, 1.2% of the company’s shares are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 110,775 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 1.4 days.

Insider Buying and Selling at Global Water Resources

In other news, Director Andrew M. Cohn acquired 154,026 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 30th. The shares were bought at an average price of $10.30 per share, with a total value of $1,586,467.80. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 2,540,908 shares in the company, valued at $26,171,352.40. This trade represents a 6.45% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 54.30% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Global Water Resources

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Nuveen LLC acquired a new stake in Global Water Resources in the first quarter worth about $341,000. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Global Water Resources by 222.7% during the second quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 51,286 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $523,000 after acquiring an additional 35,395 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Global Water Resources by 20.1% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 103,024 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,062,000 after purchasing an additional 17,257 shares during the last quarter. Pentwater Capital Management LP purchased a new position in shares of Global Water Resources in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $361,000. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in Global Water Resources by 14.4% in the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 35,075 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $362,000 after purchasing an additional 4,424 shares in the last quarter. 27.91% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on GWRS shares. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Global Water Resources in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Global Water Resources from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday, October 3rd. Finally, Roth Capital set a $15.00 target price on shares of Global Water Resources in a report on Monday, November 17th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $15.00.

Global Water Resources Stock Up 0.1%

Shares of NASDAQ GWRS opened at $8.56 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $246.10 million, a PE ratio of 53.50 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a current ratio of 1.18, a quick ratio of 1.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42. Global Water Resources has a 12-month low of $8.28 and a 12-month high of $12.32. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $9.15 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $9.77.

Global Water Resources (NASDAQ:GWRS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 12th. The utilities provider reported $0.07 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.09 by ($0.02). Global Water Resources had a return on equity of 6.84% and a net margin of 7.87%.The company had revenue of $15.52 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.20 million. As a group, analysts expect that Global Water Resources will post 0.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Global Water Resources Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 16th will be given a dividend of $0.0253 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 16th. This represents a c) dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.6%. Global Water Resources’s dividend payout ratio is presently 187.50%.

Global Water Resources Company Profile

Global Water Resources, Inc (NASDAQ:GWRS) is a publicly traded holding company based in Scottsdale, Arizona, specializing in the ownership and management of water and wastewater utilities. The company provides critical potable water delivery, wastewater collection and treatment, and reclaimed water services to residential, commercial and industrial customers across select communities in Central and Southern Arizona.

The company operates multiple regulated utility systems, serving communities such as Anthem, Biltmore, Florence and San Tan Valley.