B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG Makes New Investment in American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK)

B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG acquired a new stake in American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK - Free Report) in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 103,625 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $15,154,000. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG owned about 0.05% of American Water Works at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in AWK. Wulff Hansen & CO. boosted its holdings in shares of American Water Works by 12,816.0% in the 2nd quarter. Wulff Hansen & CO. now owns 1,464,674 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $189,177,000 after buying an additional 1,453,334 shares during the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in American Water Works by 1,131.1% in the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,438,137 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $210,313,000 after acquiring an additional 1,321,320 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its stake in American Water Works by 14,944.4% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 537,987 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $786,750,000 after acquiring an additional 534,411 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its stake in American Water Works by 631.4% in the 3rd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 445,788 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $65,192,000 after acquiring an additional 384,836 shares during the period. Finally, Sei Investments Co. raised its stake in American Water Works by 201.9% in the 2nd quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 435,604 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $56,264,000 after acquiring an additional 291,315 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.58% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Wells Fargo & Company cut American Water Works from an "equal weight" rating to an "underweight" rating and increased their price target for the company from $127.00 to $138.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Wolfe Research upgraded American Water Works to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 18th. Royal Bank of Canada restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $164.00 price target on shares of American Water Works in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on American Water Works in a research note on Monday, October 7th. They issued an "underperform" rating and a $124.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Bank of America reiterated an "underperform" rating and set a $140.00 price objective on shares of American Water Works in a research report on Friday, September 20th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, American Water Works presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $142.29.

Insider Transactions at American Water Works

In other news, Director Martha Clark Goss sold 710 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $142.85, for a total transaction of $101,423.50. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 36,880 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,268,308. This represents a 1.89 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.08% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

American Water Works Stock Performance

AWK stock traded up $1.52 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $138.19. 1,584,993 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,200,481. The company has a current ratio of 0.58, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21. The firm has a market capitalization of $26.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.36, a P/E/G ratio of 3.12 and a beta of 0.70. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $140.82 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $137.57. American Water Works Company, Inc. has a 12 month low of $113.34 and a 12 month high of $150.68.

American Water Works Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 3rd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 12th will be issued a dividend of $0.765 per share. This represents a $3.06 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.21%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 12th. American Water Works's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 60.59%.

American Water Works Profile

American Water Works Company, Inc, through its subsidiaries, provides water and wastewater services in the United States. It offers water and wastewater services to approximately 1,700 communities in 14 states serving approximately 3.5 million active customers. The company serves residential customers; commercial customers, including food and beverage providers, commercial property developers and proprietors, and energy suppliers; fire service and private fire customers; industrial customers, such as large-scale manufacturers, mining, and production operations; public authorities comprising government buildings and other public sector facilities, such as schools and universities; and other utilities and community water and wastewater systems.