Middlesex Water (NASDAQ:MSEX) Shares Down 2%

Middlesex Water (NASDAQ:MSEX) traded down 2% during trading on Thursday . The company traded as low as $65.89 and last traded at $65.89. 8,556 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 94% from the average session volume of 142,463 shares. The stock had previously closed at $67.22.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have weighed in on MSEX shares. Robert W. Baird lowered Middlesex Water from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $58.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Monday, August 5th. Baird R W downgraded shares of Middlesex Water from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, August 5th.

Middlesex Water Stock Performance

The stock’s 50-day moving average is $63.02 and its 200-day moving average is $55.91. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82. The stock has a market cap of $1.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.23 and a beta of 0.79.

Middlesex Water (NASDAQ:MSEX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 31st. The utilities provider reported $0.59 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.64 by ($0.05). The company had revenue of $49.15 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $47.00 million. Middlesex Water had a return on equity of 8.69% and a net margin of 21.14%. On average, analysts expect that Middlesex Water will post 2.21 EPS for the current year.

Middlesex Water Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 3rd. Investors of record on Thursday, August 15th were issued a dividend of $0.325 per share. This represents a $1.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.00%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, August 15th. Middlesex Water’s payout ratio is 64.36%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in Middlesex Water by 5.7% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 146,041 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $9,583,000 after purchasing an additional 7,893 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in Middlesex Water by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 467,032 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $30,648,000 after acquiring an additional 1,546 shares in the last quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Middlesex Water by 958.1% in the 4th quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 1,439 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $94,000 after purchasing an additional 1,303 shares in the last quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC increased its holdings in Middlesex Water by 4.5% in the fourth quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 14,756 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $968,000 after buying an additional 638 shares during the last quarter. Finally, KBC Group NV grew its position in shares of Middlesex Water by 16.1% in the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 255,015 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $16,734,000 after acquiring an additional 35,332 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.