First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. Has $1.72 Million Position in American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK)

First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. grew its position in American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK - Free Report) by 49.0% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 11,767 shares of the utilities provider's stock after acquiring an additional 3,870 shares during the quarter. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P.'s holdings in American Water Works were worth $1,721,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in AWK. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of American Water Works by 2.6% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 24,648,326 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $3,012,272,000 after purchasing an additional 624,977 shares during the last quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. grew its stake in American Water Works by 153.8% during the 1st quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. now owns 13,640 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,667,000 after buying an additional 8,266 shares during the last quarter. Duality Advisers LP increased its position in American Water Works by 202.2% in the first quarter. Duality Advisers LP now owns 46,633 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $5,699,000 after buying an additional 31,203 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in American Water Works by 21.6% in the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 31,283 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $4,023,000 after buying an additional 5,564 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Howland Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of American Water Works by 20.0% during the first quarter. Howland Capital Management LLC now owns 163,185 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $19,943,000 after acquiring an additional 27,200 shares during the period. 86.58% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on AWK shares. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $164.00 price objective on shares of American Water Works in a research report on Thursday, September 19th. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on American Water Works in a research report on Monday, October 7th. They set an "underperform" rating and a $124.00 price target for the company. Wolfe Research raised American Water Works to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, September 18th. Bank of America restated an "underperform" rating and set a $140.00 price objective on shares of American Water Works in a research note on Friday, September 20th. Finally, Mizuho lowered shares of American Water Works from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and increased their target price for the company from $131.00 to $140.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $140.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Martha Clark Goss sold 710 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $142.85, for a total value of $101,423.50. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 36,880 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,268,308. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.08% of the company's stock.

American Water Works Price Performance

American Water Works stock traded down $2.11 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $136.00. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,044,298 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,194,814. 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 quick ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24. The company has a market capitalization of $26.50 billion, a PE ratio of 27.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.26 and a beta of 0.69. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $142.81 and its 200-day moving average price is $136.11.

American Water Works (NYSE:AWK - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The utilities provider reported $1.80 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.84 by ($0.04). The business had revenue of $1.32 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.20 billion. American Water Works had a return on equity of 9.84% and a net margin of 21.77%. Analysts anticipate that American Water Works Company, Inc. will post 5.27 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Water Works Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 3rd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 12th will be paid a dividend of $0.765 per share. This represents a $3.06 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.25%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 12th. American Water Works's dividend payout ratio 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.