Figure 8 Investment Strategies LLC Buys Shares of 7,682 American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK)

Figure 8 Investment Strategies LLC bought a new position in shares of American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 7,682 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $956,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in AWK. Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its stake in American Water Works by 5.5% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,418,102 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $300,739,000 after acquiring an additional 125,128 shares in the last quarter. Czech National Bank lifted its position in shares of American Water Works by 6.5% during the fourth quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 42,257 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $5,261,000 after purchasing an additional 2,562 shares in the last quarter. Swedbank AB lifted its position in shares of American Water Works by 65.5% during the third quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 106,383 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $15,557,000 after purchasing an additional 42,094 shares in the last quarter. PFW Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of American Water Works in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,783,000. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its holdings in shares of American Water Works by 0.6% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 969,016 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $141,709,000 after purchasing an additional 5,889 shares in the last quarter. 86.58% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

American Water Works Trading Up 1.4 %

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 1 year low of $113.34 and a 1 year high of $150.68. The stock has a market cap of $24.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.11, a P/E/G ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.72. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $125.38 and a 200-day simple moving average of $135.47.

American Water Works Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 7th. This represents a $3.06 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.41%. American Water Works’s payout ratio is currently 60.59%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have commented on AWK shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of American Water Works from $147.00 to $128.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. UBS Group upgraded American Water Works from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $151.00 to $155.00 in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. Finally, 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 report on Tuesday, January 7th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and two have issued 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 $139.38.

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.