First Merchants Corp Cuts Stock Position in American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK)

First Merchants Corp lessened its holdings in American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK) by 11.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 14,976 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 1,919 shares during the quarter. First Merchants Corp’s holdings in American Water Works were worth $1,864,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in AWK. Crews Bank & Trust purchased a new stake in American Water Works during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of American Water Works by 155.6% during the 3rd quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC now owns 299 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $44,000 after acquiring an additional 182 shares during the period. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC bought a new position in shares of American Water Works during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $48,000. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton increased its stake in shares of American Water Works by 29.0% during the 4th quarter. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton now owns 400 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $50,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new stake in shares of American Water Works in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $51,000. 86.58% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have weighed in on AWK shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on American Water Works from $147.00 to $128.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded American Water Works from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and cut their price target for the stock from $133.00 to $129.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, UBS Group upgraded American Water Works from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $151.00 to $155.00 in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, American Water Works currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $139.38.

American Water Works Price Performance

Shares of NYSE AWK opened at $126.79 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a current ratio of 0.58. 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 has a market cap of $24.71 billion, a PE ratio of 25.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.72. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $125.38 and a 200-day moving average of $135.47.

American Water Works Dividend Announcement

The business 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 dividend of $0.765 per share. This represents a $3.06 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.41%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 7th. American Water Works’s payout ratio is presently 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.