Empirical Asset Management LLC Takes Position in American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK)

Empirical Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 11,769 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,465,000.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in American Water Works by 1,131.1% during the third 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 in the last quarter. Groupama Asset Managment grew its position in shares of American Water Works by 4,227.0% during the third quarter. Groupama Asset Managment now owns 711,927 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $104,000 after purchasing an additional 695,474 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its position in shares of American Water Works by 14,944.4% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 537,987 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $786,750,000 after buying an additional 534,411 shares in the last quarter. Confluence Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in American Water Works by 268.0% during the fourth quarter. Confluence Investment Management LLC now owns 537,138 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $66,868,000 after buying an additional 391,166 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its holdings in American Water Works by 631.4% during 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 buying an additional 384,836 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.58% of the company's stock.

American Water Works Trading Up 0.3 %

AWK stock traded up $0.33 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $126.69. The company had a trading volume of 1,003,218 shares, compared to its average volume of 898,568. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $129.44 and a 200 day moving average of $136.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a current ratio of 0.58 and a quick ratio of 0.53. American Water Works Company, Inc. has a 12 month low of $113.34 and a 12 month high of $150.68. The company has a market capitalization of $24.69 billion, a PE ratio of 25.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 0.71.

American Water Works Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Stockholders 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 dividend yield of 2.42%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 7th. American Water Works's payout ratio is 60.59%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently commented on the company. Bank of America reiterated an "underperform" rating and issued a $140.00 price target on shares of American Water Works in a research report on Friday, September 20th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded American Water Works from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and decreased their price target for the company from $133.00 to $129.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. UBS Group upgraded shares of American Water Works from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their target price for the stock from $151.00 to $155.00 in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. Mizuho lowered shares of American Water Works from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $131.00 to $140.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on shares of American Water Works in a research note on Monday, October 7th. They issued an "underperform" rating and a $124.00 price objective for the company. 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's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, American Water Works presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $141.00.

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.