Assenagon Asset Management S.A. Raises Stock Holdings in Middlesex Water (NASDAQ:MSEX)

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its position in shares of Middlesex Water (NASDAQ:MSEX - Free Report) by 89.0% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 74,946 shares of the utilities provider's stock after buying an additional 35,282 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. owned about 0.42% of Middlesex Water worth $4,889,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Middlesex Water by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,427,157 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $93,650,000 after acquiring an additional 20,712 shares during the last quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Middlesex Water in the first quarter worth approximately $266,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its holdings in shares of Middlesex Water by 36.8% in the first quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 18,679 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $981,000 after buying an additional 5,020 shares during the last quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Middlesex Water by 73.6% in the first quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 6,302 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $331,000 after buying an additional 2,671 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Texas Permanent School Fund Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Middlesex Water by 1.4% in the first quarter. Texas Permanent School Fund Corp now owns 15,584 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $818,000 after buying an additional 208 shares during the last quarter. 79.52% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Middlesex Water Price Performance

NASDAQ:MSEX traded down $1.03 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $62.48. 59,949 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 135,015. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82. Middlesex Water has a 1 year low of $45.42 and a 1 year high of $73.47. The company has a market cap of $1.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.33 and a beta of 0.79. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $63.91 and a 200 day moving average price of $58.60.

Middlesex Water (NASDAQ:MSEX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The utilities provider reported $0.59 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.64 by ($0.05). The firm had revenue of $49.15 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $47.00 million. Middlesex Water had a net margin of 21.14% and a return on equity of 8.69%. Sell-side analysts forecast that Middlesex Water will post 2.21 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Middlesex Water Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 2nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be given a dividend of $0.34 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.18%. This is a boost from Middlesex Water's previous quarterly dividend of $0.33. Middlesex Water's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 63.11%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MSEX has been the topic of a number of research reports. Robert W. Baird downgraded shares of Middlesex Water from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $58.00 price objective on the stock. in a report on Monday, August 5th. Baird R W downgraded shares of Middlesex Water from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, August 5th.

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.