Middlesex Water (NASDAQ:MSEX) Shares Gap Down on Disappointing Earnings

Middlesex Water (NASDAQ:MSEX)’s share price gapped down prior to trading on Friday following a weaker than expected earnings announcement. The stock had previously closed at $62.79, but opened at $57.85. Middlesex Water shares last traded at $59.48, with a volume of 13,860 shares traded.

The utilities provider reported $0.53 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.55 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $44.30 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $43.79 million. Middlesex Water had a net margin of 22.53% and a return on equity of 9.58%.

Middlesex Water Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 2nd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be given a $0.34 dividend. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.25%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 15th. Middlesex Water’s dividend payout ratio is presently 55.06%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently commented on MSEX shares. Robert W. Baird raised shares of Middlesex Water from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $61.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Janney Montgomery Scott reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Middlesex Water in a report on Friday, April 4th. StockNews.com upgraded Middlesex Water from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, April 18th. Finally, Baird R W upgraded Middlesex Water from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $58.50.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Dennis W. Doll sold 4,067 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.05, for a total transaction of $244,223.35. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 52,112 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,129,325.60. This represents a 7.24 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 1.86% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Middlesex Water

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Barclays PLC grew its stake in shares of Middlesex Water by 349.4% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 29,919 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,952,000 after acquiring an additional 23,262 shares during the period. Proficio Capital Partners LLC bought a new stake in Middlesex Water in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,595,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in Middlesex Water by 3.0% during the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 86,640 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $4,560,000 after buying an additional 2,544 shares during the last quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS bought a new position in shares of Middlesex Water during the 4th quarter valued at $379,000. Finally, WINTON GROUP Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Middlesex Water in the 4th quarter worth $1,025,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.52% of the company’s stock.

Middlesex Water Stock Down 3.9 %

The company has a market cap of $1.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 0.80. The company has a quick ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80. The company has a fifty day moving average of $61.26 and a 200 day moving average of $58.80.

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.