Algonquin Power & Utilities (NYSE:AQN) Raised to Sell at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities (NYSE:AQN) to a sell rating in a research report report published on Wednesday.

A number of other brokerages have also issued reports on AQN. BMO Capital Markets upgraded Algonquin Power & Utilities from a market perform rating to an outperform rating and increased their price target for the stock from $7.00 to $7.50 in a research note on Monday, January 8th. Desjardins upgraded Algonquin Power & Utilities from a sell rating to a hold rating and raised their price objective for the company from $4.75 to $5.75 in a research report on Monday, March 11th. National Bankshares cut their price objective on Algonquin Power & Utilities from $7.50 to $7.25 and set a sector perform rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 9th. CIBC raised their price objective on Algonquin Power & Utilities from $7.00 to $7.50 and gave the company a neutral rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 9th. Finally, Scotiabank raised their price objective on Algonquin Power & Utilities from $7.00 to $7.50 and gave the company a sector perform rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of Hold and an average price target of $7.78.

Algonquin Power & Utilities Price Performance

Shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities stock opened at $5.93 on Wednesday. Algonquin Power & Utilities has a one year low of $4.90 and a one year high of $9.14. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $6.02 and its 200 day moving average is $5.97. The stock has a market cap of $4.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 197.67 and a beta of 0.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.23, a quick ratio of 0.50 and a current ratio of 0.63.

Algonquin Power & Utilities (NYSE:AQN) last announced its earnings results on Friday, March 8th. The utilities provider reported $0.16 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.14 by $0.02. Algonquin Power & Utilities had a return on equity of 5.64% and a net margin of 1.06%. The company had revenue of $666.90 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $661.73 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.22 EPS. Algonquin Power & Utilities’s revenue for the quarter was down 10.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Algonquin Power & Utilities will post 0.49 earnings per share for the current year.

Algonquin Power & Utilities Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 28th were issued a dividend of $0.1085 per share. This represents a $0.43 annualized dividend and a yield of 7.32%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 27th. Algonquin Power & Utilities’s payout ratio is 1,433.33%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Algonquin Power & Utilities

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of AQN. Pacifica Partners Inc. increased its holdings in Algonquin Power & Utilities by 1,975.0% during the fourth quarter. Pacifica Partners Inc. now owns 4,150 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 3,950 shares during the period. Parallel Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Algonquin Power & Utilities by 76.3% in the fourth quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 4,347 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 1,882 shares during the last quarter. Stonehage Fleming Financial Services Holdings Ltd purchased a new position in Algonquin Power & Utilities in the third quarter worth $28,000. Power Corp of Canada purchased a new position in Algonquin Power & Utilities in the first quarter worth $31,000. Finally, Tower Research Capital LLC TRC grew its holdings in Algonquin Power & Utilities by 970.3% in the third quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 7,535 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $45,000 after purchasing an additional 6,831 shares during the last quarter. 62.28% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Algonquin Power & Utilities Company Profile

Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp. operates in the power and utility industries in the United States, Canada, and other regions. The company operates in two segments, Regulated Services Group and Renewable Energy Group. The company primarily owns and operates a regulated electric, water distribution and wastewater collection, and natural gas utility systems and transmission operations.