UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC Reduces Stock Holdings in Middlesex Water (NASDAQ:MSEX)

UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC reduced its holdings in shares of Middlesex Water (NASDAQ:MSEX) by 4.6% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 49,311 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 2,402 shares during the quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC’s holdings in Middlesex Water were worth $3,217,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. CWM LLC grew its stake in shares of Middlesex Water by 65.1% during the second quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,306 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $68,000 after acquiring an additional 515 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in shares of Middlesex Water by 66.2% in the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,046 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $133,000 after purchasing an additional 815 shares during the last quarter. Crestwood Advisors Group LLC acquired a new stake in Middlesex Water in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $210,000. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC purchased a new stake in Middlesex Water during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $225,000. Finally, Everence Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Middlesex Water during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $230,000. 79.52% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MSEX has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Bank of America initiated coverage on shares of Middlesex Water in a report on Wednesday. They issued an “underperform” rating and a $56.00 price target for the company. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on Middlesex Water from $58.00 to $61.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st.

Middlesex Water Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ MSEX opened at $59.42 on Friday. Middlesex Water has a 52 week low of $45.42 and a 52 week high of $73.47. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $64.51 and its 200 day moving average price is $61.23. 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 firm has a market cap of $1.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.83 and a beta of 0.82.

Middlesex Water (NASDAQ:MSEX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The utilities provider reported $0.80 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.67 by $0.13. The business had revenue of $55.10 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $50.00 million. Middlesex Water had a net margin of 22.53% and a return on equity of 9.58%. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.56 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Middlesex Water will post 2.34 earnings per share for the current year.

Middlesex Water Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 15th were issued a $0.34 dividend. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.29%. This is a positive change from Middlesex Water’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.33. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 15th. Middlesex Water’s dividend payout ratio is presently 59.13%.

About Middlesex Water

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.