Short Interest in American States Water (NYSE:AWR) Drops By 13.1%

American States Water (NYSE:AWR) was the target of a large decrease in short interest in August. As of August 31st, there was short interest totalling 372,000 shares, a decrease of 13.1% from the August 15th total of 428,100 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 208,900 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 1.8 days.

American States Water Stock Down 0.6 %

NYSE AWR traded down $0.53 on Wednesday, reaching $83.66. The stock had a trading volume of 190,020 shares, compared to its average volume of 219,526. The company has a current ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92. American States Water has a 1 year low of $66.03 and a 1 year high of $85.71. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $81.18 and a 200 day moving average price of $75.29. The company has a market capitalization of $3.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.53, a P/E/G ratio of 4.28 and a beta of 0.49.

American States Water (NYSE:AWR) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.85 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.87 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $155.30 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $138.00 million. American States Water had a net margin of 18.85% and a return on equity of 13.45%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 1.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.83 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that American States Water will post 3.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American States Water Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 16th were issued a dividend of $0.4655 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 16th. This represents a $1.86 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.23%. This is an increase from American States Water’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.43. American States Water’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 60.78%.

Insider Activity at American States Water

In other American States Water news, Director Anne M. Holloway sold 500 shares of American States Water stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.89, for a total transaction of $40,445.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 38,519 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,115,801.91. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.82% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On American States Water

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Inspire Investing LLC lifted its position in shares of American States Water by 2.9% in the first quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 5,026 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $363,000 after buying an additional 140 shares during the last quarter. CWM LLC boosted its position in American States Water by 31.4% during the second quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,045 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $76,000 after purchasing an additional 250 shares during the period. Arizona State Retirement System grew its holdings in American States Water by 2.5% during the second quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 10,421 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $756,000 after purchasing an additional 258 shares during the last quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. raised its position in shares of American States Water by 9.6% in the second quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,075 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $223,000 after purchasing an additional 269 shares during the period. Finally, Assetmark Inc. lifted its stake in shares of American States Water by 633.3% in the fourth quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 352 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 304 shares during the last quarter. 75.24% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AWR has been the topic of a number of research reports. StockNews.com raised shares of American States Water from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 12th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of American States Water from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $80.00 to $87.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st.

About American States Water

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.