StockNews.com Upgrades American Water Works (NYSE:AWK) to Hold

American Water Works (NYSE:AWK - Get Free Report) was upgraded by equities researchers at StockNews.com from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report released on Friday.

Several other research analysts also recently issued reports on AWK. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of American Water Works from $133.00 to $142.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on American Water Works from $147.00 to $128.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, American Water Works currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $141.86.

American Water Works Stock Up 2.4 %

Shares of NYSE AWK traded up $3.32 on Friday, reaching $144.19. 669,191 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,233,552. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $136.41 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $134.23. American Water Works has a 12 month low of $113.34 and a 12 month high of $155.50. The company has a market cap of $28.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.80 and a beta of 0.68. The company has a quick ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 0.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21.

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American Water Works (NYSE:AWK - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 19th. The utilities provider reported $1.22 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.13 by $0.09. American Water Works had a return on equity of 10.29% and a net margin of 22.44%. The company had revenue of $1.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.11 billion. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that American Water Works will post 5.71 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Crews Bank & Trust bought a new position in American Water Works in the 4th quarter worth $26,000. Providence First Trust Co bought a new position in shares of American Water Works in the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of American Water Works during the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Capital A Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of American Water Works during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in American Water Works by 54.2% in the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 293 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 103 shares in the last quarter. 86.58% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

American Water Works Company 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.