Nicola Wealth Management LTD. Cuts Stock Position in American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK)

Nicola Wealth Management LTD. trimmed its position in American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK) by 34.2% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 12,500 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 6,500 shares during the period. Nicola Wealth Management LTD.’s holdings in American Water Works were worth $1,828,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of American Water Works by 2.6% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 24,648,326 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $3,012,272,000 after buying an additional 624,977 shares during the period. Impax Asset Management Group plc lifted its stake in American Water Works by 3.7% during the second quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc now owns 6,902,257 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $890,422,000 after purchasing an additional 247,745 shares during the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC boosted its holdings in shares of American Water Works by 6.8% in the 3rd quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 2,245,306 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $328,354,000 after buying an additional 143,914 shares in the last quarter. Mirova US LLC boosted its position in shares of American Water Works by 2.1% in the 2nd quarter. Mirova US LLC now owns 1,588,109 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $205,120,000 after purchasing an additional 32,764 shares during the period. Finally, Wulff Hansen & CO. raised its position in American Water Works by 12,816.0% in the 2nd quarter. Wulff Hansen & CO. now owns 1,464,674 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $189,177,000 after purchasing an additional 1,453,334 shares during the last quarter. 86.58% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at American Water Works

In related news, Director Martha Clark Goss sold 710 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $142.85, for a total transaction 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 ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.08% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on AWK shares. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of American Water Works in a research note on Monday, October 7th. They issued an “underperform” rating and a $124.00 price objective on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $164.00 price target on shares of American Water Works in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. Mizuho lowered shares of American Water Works from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $131.00 to $140.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. Bank of America restated an “underperform” rating and issued a $140.00 target price on shares of American Water Works in a research report on Friday, September 20th. Finally, Wolfe Research upgraded American Water Works to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 18th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $140.00.

American Water Works Stock Performance

Shares of AWK stock traded up $0.83 during trading on Thursday, reaching $133.27. 162,607 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,192,377. The stock has a market capitalization of $25.97 billion, a PE ratio of 26.23, 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 Company, Inc. has a twelve month low of $113.34 and a twelve month high of $150.68. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $141.44 and its 200-day moving average price is $137.25.

American Water Works Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 3rd. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 12th will be given a dividend of $0.765 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 12th. This represents a $3.06 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.30%. American Water Works’s dividend payout ratio is currently 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.