Trust Co. of Vermont Has $222,000 Holdings in American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK)

Trust Co. of Vermont decreased its stake in shares of American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK) by 7.2% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,716 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 133 shares during the period. Trust Co. of Vermont’s holdings in American Water Works were worth $222,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. MV Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in American Water Works by 110.8% during the fourth quarter. MV Capital Management Inc. now owns 196 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 103 shares during the period. Ables Iannone Moore & Associates Inc. bought a new stake in American Water Works during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. ORG Partners LLC lifted its holdings in American Water Works by 79.2% during the fourth quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 233 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 103 shares during the period. Tortoise Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of American Water Works by 71.9% in the fourth quarter. Tortoise Investment Management LLC now owns 239 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the period. Finally, Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. raised its stake in shares of American Water Works by 100.0% in the first quarter. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. now owns 254 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 127 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.58% of the company’s stock.

American Water Works Trading Up 1.5 %

AWK traded up $2.10 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $145.70. 215,304 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,290,411. American Water Works Company, Inc. has a 52 week low of $113.34 and a 52 week high of $149.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $28.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.13, a P/E/G ratio of 3.44 and a beta of 0.67. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $134.03 and a two-hundred day moving average of $126.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24, a current ratio of 0.64 and a quick ratio of 0.79.

American Water Works (NYSE:AWK) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The utilities provider reported $1.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.47 by ($0.05). American Water Works had a return on equity of 9.60% and a net margin of 21.93%. The firm had revenue of $1.15 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.10 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.44 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts anticipate that American Water Works Company, Inc. will post 5.25 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Water Works Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 4th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 13th will be given a $0.765 dividend. This represents a $3.06 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.10%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, August 13th. American Water Works’s dividend payout ratio is currently 62.07%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have issued reports on the company. Wells Fargo & Company lowered American Water Works from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $127.00 to $138.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. UBS Group boosted their target price on American Water Works from $124.00 to $139.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, May 13th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $141.17.

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.