Middlesex Water (NASDAQ:MSEX) Rating Increased to Outperform at Robert W. Baird

Robert W. Baird upgraded shares of Middlesex Water (NASDAQ:MSEX) from a neutral rating to an outperform rating in a report published on Monday morning, Marketbeat reports. Robert W. Baird currently has $61.00 price objective on the utilities provider’s stock.

Separately, Bank of America started coverage on shares of Middlesex Water in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. They set an “underperform” rating and a $56.00 price target on the stock.

Middlesex Water Stock Up 15.8 %

Shares of NASDAQ MSEX opened at $58.03 on Monday. Middlesex Water has a one year low of $45.42 and a one year high of $70.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 0.65 and a quick ratio of 0.57. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $51.09 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $59.18. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.23, a PEG ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 0.85.

Middlesex Water (NASDAQ:MSEX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, February 28th. The utilities provider reported $0.49 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.36 by $0.13. Middlesex Water had a net margin of 22.53% and a return on equity of 9.58%. The business had revenue of $47.11 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $45.00 million. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.32 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that Middlesex Water will post 2.34 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Middlesex Water Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 3rd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th were paid a dividend of $0.34 per share. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.34%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 18th. Middlesex Water’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 59.13%.

Institutional Trading of Middlesex Water

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Sterling Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Middlesex Water by 771.9% during the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 497 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 440 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its stake in Middlesex Water by 1,006.4% in the fourth quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 520 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 473 shares during the period. Allworth Financial LP lifted its stake in Middlesex Water by 1,136.4% in the fourth quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 544 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 500 shares during the period. Crowley Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Middlesex Water in the fourth quarter worth $37,000. Finally, Crestwood Advisors Group LLC purchased a new stake in Middlesex Water in the third quarter worth $210,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.52% of the company’s stock.

Middlesex Water Company 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.