Summit Investment Advisors Inc. Increases Position in American States Water (NYSE:AWR)

Summit Investment Advisors Inc. boosted its position in American States Water (NYSE:AWR) by 5.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,900 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 201 shares during the quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc.’s holdings in American States Water were worth $303,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. MML Investors Services LLC purchased a new stake in American States Water in the third quarter worth approximately $206,000. Barclays PLC lifted its holdings in shares of American States Water by 172.8% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 78,706 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $6,554,000 after acquiring an additional 49,851 shares during the last quarter. Virtu Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of American States Water in the 3rd quarter valued at $287,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of American States Water by 107.1% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 381,981 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $31,815,000 after purchasing an additional 197,556 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in shares of American States Water by 14.4% during the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,720 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $134,000 after purchasing an additional 216 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.24% of the company’s stock.

American States Water Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:AWR opened at $80.11 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88. The company has a market cap of $3.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 12.92 and a beta of 0.56. American States Water has a 12 month low of $68.26 and a 12 month high of $87.50. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $77.01 and a 200-day moving average price of $79.06.

American States Water (NYSE:AWR) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 19th. The utilities provider reported $0.69 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.64 by $0.05. American States Water had a return on equity of 13.63% and a net margin of 20.03%. The business had revenue of $143.10 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $160.17 million. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that American States Water will post 3.34 EPS for the current year.

American States Water Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 13th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th were given a dividend of $0.4655 per share. This represents a $1.86 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.32%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 18th. American States Water’s payout ratio is currently 58.68%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other American States Water news, Director Diana M. Bonta sold 969 shares of American States Water stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.00, for a total transaction of $74,613.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 15,931 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,226,687. The trade was a 5.73 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 0.83% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on AWR shares. Wells Fargo & Company cut American States Water from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $84.00 to $77.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. StockNews.com raised American States Water from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, March 8th. Finally, Bank of America lowered American States Water from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $85.00 to $71.00 in a research note on Monday, February 3rd.

American States Water Profile

American States Water Company, through its subsidiaries, provides water and electric services to residential, commercial, industrial, and other customers in the United States. It operates through three segments: Water, Electric, and Contracted Services. The company purchases, produces, distributes, and sells water, as well as distributes electricity.