Verition Fund Management LLC Sells 25,264 Shares of American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK)

Verition Fund Management LLC reduced its stake in shares of American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK - Free Report) by 82.5% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 5,341 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 25,264 shares during the quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC's holdings in American Water Works were worth $781,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC increased its holdings in American Water Works by 4.2% in the 3rd quarter. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC now owns 1,858 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $272,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares during the last quarter. Miracle Mile Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of American Water Works by 2.9% in the third quarter. Miracle Mile Advisors LLC now owns 2,790 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $408,000 after buying an additional 79 shares in the last quarter. Invesco LLC boosted its stake in American Water Works by 3.4% during the third quarter. Invesco LLC now owns 2,467 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $361,000 after buying an additional 82 shares during the last quarter. Asset Dedication LLC grew its holdings in American Water Works by 1.6% during the 2nd quarter. Asset Dedication LLC now owns 5,415 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $699,000 after buying an additional 85 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Assetmark Inc. increased its stake in American Water Works by 31.7% in the 3rd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 370 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $54,000 after acquiring an additional 89 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.58% of the company's stock.

American Water Works Trading Up 0.2 %

AWK stock traded up $0.26 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $130.98. The company had a trading volume of 838,061 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,209,812. American Water Works Company, Inc. has a 52-week low of $113.34 and a 52-week high of $150.68. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $137.42 and a 200-day simple moving average of $137.87. The firm has a market capitalization of $25.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.94, a PEG ratio of 3.08 and a beta of 0.70. The company has a quick ratio of 0.53, a current ratio of 0.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21.

American Water Works Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 7th will be issued a $0.765 dividend. This represents a $3.06 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.34%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 7th. American Water Works's dividend payout ratio is 60.59%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AWK has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Bank of America reissued an "underperform" rating and issued a $140.00 target price on shares of American Water Works in a report on Friday, September 20th. Wolfe Research upgraded shares of American Water Works to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, September 18th. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of American Water Works in a report on Monday, October 7th. They issued an "underperform" rating and a $124.00 price target for the company. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $164.00 price objective on shares of American Water Works in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. Finally, Mizuho lowered American Water Works from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and raised their price objective for the company from $131.00 to $140.00 in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $142.29.

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.