South Dakota Investment Council Acquires Shares of 33,900 H2O America $HTO

South Dakota Investment Council bought a new stake in shares of H2O America (NASDAQ:HTO) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 33,900 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,989,000. South Dakota Investment Council owned about 0.08% of H2O America at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Quadrant Capital Group LLC grew its position in H2O America by 194.9% during the fourth quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 525 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 347 shares during the period. Parallel Advisors LLC raised its position in H2O America by 1,020.8% in the fourth quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 594 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 541 shares during the period. Bessemer Group Inc. raised its position in H2O America by 44.6% in the first quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 661 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 204 shares during the period. Farther Finance Advisors LLC bought a new stake in H2O America in the fourth quarter worth about $40,000. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in H2O America by 76.2% in the first quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 911 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $53,000 after acquiring an additional 394 shares during the last quarter. 84.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

H2O America Stock Performance

NASDAQ HTO opened at $61.33 on Friday. The company’s 50 day moving average is $60.09 and its 200-day moving average is $57.53. H2O America has a 12-month low of $43.75 and a 12-month high of $67.09. The company has a quick ratio of 2.02, a current ratio of 1.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02. The firm has a market cap of $2.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.39 and a beta of 0.35.

H2O America (NASDAQ:HTO) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 27th. The utilities provider reported $0.72 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.70 by $0.02. H2O America had a net margin of 12.91% and a return on equity of 6.65%. The business had revenue of $210.47 million during the quarter. H2O America has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.080-3.180 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that H2O America will post 3.13 earnings per share for the current year.

H2O America Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Investors of record on Monday, August 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.44 per share. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 10th. H2O America’s payout ratio is presently 62.19%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on HTO. BTIG Research set a $70.00 price target on shares of H2O America in a research note on Wednesday. Wells Fargo & Company started coverage on H2O America in a research note on Monday, May 11th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $60.00 price objective on the stock. Bank of America reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of H2O America in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. TD Cowen assumed coverage on H2O America in a report on Thursday, April 16th. They set a “hold” rating and a $64.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised H2O America from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $65.67.

Insider Activity

In related news, major shareholder Atlas Infrastructure Partners acquired 2,784 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 7th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $62.03 per share, for a total transaction of $172,691.52. Following the purchase, the insider owned 4,615,265 shares in the company, valued at $286,284,887.95. This trade represents a 0.06% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 0.52% of the company’s stock.

H2O America Company Profile

SJW Group, through its subsidiaries, provides water utility and other related services in the United States. It operates in Water Utility Services and Real Estate Services segments. The company engages in the production, purchase, storage, purification, distribution, wholesale, and retail sale of water and wastewater services; and supplies groundwater from wells, surface water from watershed run-off and diversion, reclaimed water, and imported water purchased from the Santa Clara Valley Water District.