American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK) Shares Sold by Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC

Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC decreased its position in American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK - Free Report) by 2.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 104,333 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 2,109 shares during the quarter. Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC owned 0.05% of American Water Works worth $12,988,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Figure 8 Investment Strategies LLC purchased a new position in American Water Works in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $956,000. Stanley Laman Group Ltd. purchased a new position in American Water Works in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $232,000. Van ECK Associates Corp increased its stake in American Water Works by 12.0% in the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 60,525 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $7,534,000 after purchasing an additional 6,504 shares during the last quarter. Retirement Guys Formula LLC grew its position in shares of American Water Works by 8.1% during the fourth quarter. Retirement Guys Formula LLC now owns 5,724 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $713,000 after acquiring an additional 430 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jmac Enterprises LLC acquired a new position in shares of American Water Works in the 4th quarter valued at $498,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.58% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AWK has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of American Water Works from $147.00 to $128.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of American Water Works from $129.00 to $133.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday. Finally, UBS Group raised shares of American Water Works from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their target price for the company from $151.00 to $155.00 in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $140.57.

American Water Works Price Performance

Shares of American Water Works stock traded up $0.80 on Thursday, hitting $128.66. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,831,537 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,249,476. American Water Works Company, Inc. has a 52-week low of $113.34 and a 52-week high of $150.68. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $124.91 and a 200-day moving average price of $134.87. The company has a quick ratio of 0.53, a current ratio of 0.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21. The company has a market capitalization of $25.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.69 and a beta of 0.72.

American Water Works (NYSE:AWK - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 19th. The utilities provider reported $1.22 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.13 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $1.20 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.11 billion. American Water Works had a net margin of 21.77% and a return on equity of 9.75%. On average, equities research analysts expect that American Water Works Company, Inc. will post 5.29 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Water Works Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Investors of record on Friday, February 7th will be given a dividend of $0.765 per share. This represents a $3.06 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.38%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 7th. American Water Works's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 60.59%.

About American Water Works

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.