Middlesex Water (NASDAQ:MSEX) Trading Down 4% – Here’s Why

Middlesex Water (NASDAQ:MSEX)’s stock price fell 4% on Monday . The stock traded as low as $60.50 and last traded at $59.70. 10,386 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 91% from the average session volume of 120,908 shares. The stock had previously closed at $62.21.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently weighed in on MSEX. Bank of America began coverage on Middlesex Water in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. They set an “underperform” rating and a $56.00 target price for the company. StockNews.com upgraded Middlesex Water from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Robert W. Baird upgraded Middlesex Water from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $61.00 target price for the company in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. Finally, Baird R W upgraded Middlesex Water from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, March 3rd.

Middlesex Water Stock Performance

The stock has a market cap of $1.09 billion, a PE ratio of 26.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a quick ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $53.12 and a 200 day moving average price of $59.18.

Middlesex Water (NASDAQ:MSEX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, February 28th. The utilities provider reported $0.49 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.36 by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $47.11 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $45.00 million. Middlesex Water had a return on equity of 9.58% and a net margin of 22.53%. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.32 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that Middlesex Water will post 2.34 earnings per share for the current year.

Middlesex Water Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 3rd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th were paid a dividend of $0.34 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.23%. Middlesex Water’s dividend payout ratio is currently 55.06%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Middlesex Water

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. grew its stake in Middlesex Water by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 19,863 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,045,000 after purchasing an additional 202 shares during the last quarter. Ellevest Inc. grew its stake in shares of Middlesex Water by 3.8% during the fourth quarter. Ellevest Inc. now owns 6,395 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $337,000 after acquiring an additional 233 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can grew its stake in shares of Middlesex Water by 3.5% during the fourth quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 7,474 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $393,000 after acquiring an additional 250 shares during the last quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Middlesex Water by 771.9% during the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 497 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 440 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co grew its stake in shares of Middlesex Water by 2.2% during the fourth quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 20,614 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,081,000 after acquiring an additional 443 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.52% of the company’s stock.

Middlesex Water Company Profile

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.