StockNews.com Downgrades American States Water (NYSE:AWR) to Sell

American States Water (NYSE:AWR) was downgraded by research analysts at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report issued on Saturday.

Separately, Wells Fargo & Company raised American States Water from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $80.00 to $87.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 31st.

American States Water Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:AWR opened at $85.05 on Friday. American States Water has a twelve month low of $66.03 and a twelve month high of $87.50. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $83.78 and its 200-day moving average is $79.34. The company has a quick ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 0.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.64, a PEG ratio of 4.47 and a beta of 0.49.

American States Water (NYSE:AWR) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.95 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.98 by ($0.03). The business had revenue of $161.78 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $161.00 million. American States Water had a net margin of 19.26% and a return on equity of 13.53%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.85 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that American States Water will post 3.02 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at American States Water

In other news, Director Anne M. Holloway sold 500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.89, for a total value of $40,445.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 38,519 shares in the company, valued at $3,115,801.91. The trade was a 1.28 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.82% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of American States Water

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in American States Water by 2.9% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 4,760,524 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $343,900,000 after purchasing an additional 132,674 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in American States Water by 1.6% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 850,878 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $70,884,000 after buying an additional 13,024 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its holdings in American States Water by 0.8% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 845,936 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $61,389,000 after buying an additional 6,372 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its position in American States Water by 5.6% in the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 450,788 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $32,714,000 after acquiring an additional 24,042 shares during the period. Finally, Millennium Management LLC boosted its stake in American States Water by 205.5% in the second quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 440,598 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $31,974,000 after acquiring an additional 296,361 shares during the last quarter. 75.24% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.