Desjardins Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Algonquin Power & Utilities (NYSE:AQN) Stock

Algonquin Power & Utilities (NYSE:AQN) had its price objective upped by stock analysts at Desjardins from $7.00 to $7.25 in a research note issued to investors on Thursday,BayStreet.CA reports. The brokerage presently has a “buy” rating on the utilities provider’s stock. Desjardins’ price target would indicate a potential upside of 11.37% from the company’s current price.

Several other analysts also recently commented on AQN. National Bankshares set a $7.50 target price on shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities in a report on Wednesday, January 7th. Scotiabank upgraded Algonquin Power & Utilities from a “sector perform” rating to a “sector outperform” rating and set a $6.50 price objective for the company in a report on Tuesday, December 16th. Raymond James Financial increased their target price on Algonquin Power & Utilities from $6.00 to $6.50 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, October 24th. Natl Bk Canada upgraded Algonquin Power & Utilities from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 6th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities in a report on Monday, December 29th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $6.75.

Algonquin Power & Utilities Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE AQN opened at $6.51 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 1.23, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26. The company has a market capitalization of $5.00 billion, a P/E ratio of -162.71 and a beta of 0.76. Algonquin Power & Utilities has a 12 month low of $4.29 and a 12 month high of $6.68. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $6.25 and a 200-day moving average of $5.96.

Algonquin Power & Utilities (NYSE:AQN) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, November 7th. The utilities provider reported $0.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.06 by $0.03. Algonquin Power & Utilities had a positive return on equity of 5.14% and a negative net margin of 1.11%.The business had revenue of $600.80 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $596.67 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.08 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Algonquin Power & Utilities will post 0.38 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Algonquin Power & Utilities

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Public Sector Pension Investment Board raised its stake in Algonquin Power & Utilities by 2.5% in the second quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 74,271 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $424,000 after purchasing an additional 1,800 shares in the last quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA increased its holdings in Algonquin Power & Utilities by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 133,733 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $823,000 after buying an additional 1,966 shares during the period. Triasima Portfolio Management inc. raised its position in shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Triasima Portfolio Management inc. now owns 201,732 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,242,000 after buying an additional 2,767 shares in the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities by 29.1% during the 3rd quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 15,840 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $85,000 after acquiring an additional 3,572 shares during the period. Finally, Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities by 6.3% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC now owns 81,643 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $438,000 after acquiring an additional 4,840 shares during the period. 62.28% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Algonquin Power & Utilities Company Profile

Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp (NYSE: AQN) is a diversified generation, transmission and distribution utility company headquartered in Oakville, Ontario. Established in 1988, the firm operates through two primary business segments: Regulated Utilities and Renewable Energy. Its Regulated Utilities segment comprises electric, natural gas and water distribution networks serving residential, commercial and industrial customers across North America, while its Renewable Energy portfolio includes hydroelectric, solar, wind and thermal generation facilities.

The company’s renewable energy assets span multiple jurisdictions in Canada and the United States, reflecting its strategy to expand clean power capacity in regions with supportive regulatory frameworks.