147,386 Shares in American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK) Purchased by Zacks Investment Management

Zacks Investment Management acquired a new stake in American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK - Free Report) in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 147,386 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $21,554,000. Zacks Investment Management owned 0.08% of American Water Works at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of AWK. State Street Corp increased its position in American Water Works by 1.9% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 11,503,553 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,682,280,000 after acquiring an additional 214,082 shares during the period. Impax Asset Management Group plc grew its stake in shares of American Water Works by 3.7% in the 2nd quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc now owns 6,902,257 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $890,422,000 after purchasing an additional 247,745 shares during the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC increased its holdings in shares of American Water Works by 6.8% in the third quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 2,245,306 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $328,354,000 after purchasing an additional 143,914 shares during the period. Mirova US LLC lifted its holdings in shares of American Water Works by 2.1% during the second quarter. Mirova US LLC now owns 1,588,109 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $205,120,000 after purchasing an additional 32,764 shares during the period. Finally, Wulff Hansen & CO. lifted its holdings in shares of American Water Works by 12,816.0% during the second quarter. Wulff Hansen & CO. now owns 1,464,674 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $189,177,000 after purchasing an additional 1,453,334 shares during the period. 86.58% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

American Water Works Price Performance

AWK stock traded up $0.27 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $132.37. 1,308,021 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,279,425. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a current ratio of 0.58. The stock has a market cap of $25.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.21, a PEG ratio of 3.05 and a beta of 0.70. American Water Works Company, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $113.34 and a fifty-two week high of $150.68. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $137.73 and its 200-day moving average price is $137.86.

American Water Works Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Investors of record on Friday, February 7th will be paid a $0.765 dividend. This represents a $3.06 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.31%. American Water Works's payout ratio is 60.59%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AWK has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Mizuho downgraded shares of American Water Works from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $131.00 to $140.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. UBS Group raised shares of American Water Works from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their price target for the stock from $151.00 to $155.00 in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on American Water Works in a report on Monday, October 7th. They issued an "underperform" rating and a $124.00 price objective on the stock. Wolfe Research raised American Water Works to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 18th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $164.00 price target on shares of American Water Works in a report on Thursday, September 19th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $142.29.

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.