American States Water (NYSE:AWR) Stock Rating Upgraded by StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of American States Water (NYSE:AWR - Free Report) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a research report sent to investors on Saturday morning.

Other analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. Wells Fargo & Company cut shares of American States Water from an "equal weight" rating to an "underweight" rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $84.00 to $77.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Bank of America downgraded American States Water from a "neutral" rating to an "underperform" rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $85.00 to $71.00 in a research report on Monday, February 3rd.

American States Water Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:AWR traded down $0.88 during trading on Friday, hitting $80.10. The company's stock had a trading volume of 459,253 shares, compared to its average volume of 201,301. The company has a 50-day moving average of $74.88 and a 200-day moving average of $80.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.76. The firm has a market cap of $3.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.27, a P/E/G ratio of 12.92 and a beta of 0.47. American States Water has a 12 month low of $66.03 and a 12 month high of $87.50.

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American States Water (NYSE:AWR - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The utilities provider reported $0.69 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.64 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $143.10 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $160.17 million. American States Water had a return on equity of 13.63% and a net margin of 20.03%. On average, sell-side analysts expect that American States Water will post 3.34 earnings per share for the current year.

American States Water Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be given a dividend of $0.4655 per share. This represents a $1.86 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.32%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 18th. American States Water's payout ratio is 58.68%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On American States Water

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Ameriflex Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of American States Water during the 4th quarter worth $78,000. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio acquired a new stake in shares of American States Water in the 4th quarter worth $26,000. PharVision Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in American States Water in the fourth quarter valued at about $415,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its holdings in American States Water by 29.6% in the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 153,572 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $11,936,000 after acquiring an additional 35,040 shares in the last quarter. Finally, iSAM Funds UK Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of American States Water during the fourth quarter worth about $573,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.24% of the company's stock.

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.