Middlesex Water (NASDAQ:MSEX) Upgraded to “Hold” at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Middlesex Water (NASDAQ:MSEX) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a research note released on Wednesday.

A number of other research analysts also recently weighed in on the company. Baird R W upgraded Middlesex Water from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Robert W. Baird upgraded Middlesex Water from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $61.00 price target on the stock in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Finally, Janney Montgomery Scott upgraded Middlesex Water from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $66.00 price target on the stock in a report on Monday, May 12th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $61.00.

Middlesex Water Stock Performance

Shares of MSEX stock opened at $58.42 on Wednesday. Middlesex Water has a 1-year low of $48.18 and a 1-year high of $70.73. The company has a current ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 0.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80. The company has a market capitalization of $1.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.40, a P/E/G ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 0.88. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $61.36 and its 200-day simple moving average is $58.38.

Middlesex Water (NASDAQ:MSEX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The utilities provider reported $0.53 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.55 by ($0.02). Middlesex Water had a net margin of 22.53% and a return on equity of 9.58%. The business had revenue of $44.30 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $43.79 million. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Middlesex Water will post 2.34 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Middlesex Water Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 2nd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be paid a $0.34 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 15th. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.33%. Middlesex Water’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 56.43%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Middlesex Water

In other Middlesex Water news, Director Dennis W. Doll sold 4,067 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.05, for a total value of $244,223.35. Following the transaction, the director now owns 52,112 shares in the company, valued at $3,129,325.60. The trade was a 7.24% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 1.32% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Barclays PLC grew its stake in Middlesex Water by 349.4% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 29,919 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,952,000 after purchasing an additional 23,262 shares in the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Middlesex Water in the fourth quarter worth about $1,595,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Middlesex Water by 3.0% in the fourth quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 86,640 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $4,560,000 after buying an additional 2,544 shares during the last quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS acquired a new stake in shares of Middlesex Water in the fourth quarter worth about $379,000. Finally, WINTON GROUP Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Middlesex Water in the fourth quarter worth about $1,025,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.52% of the company’s stock.

Middlesex Water Company Profile

Middlesex Water Company owns and operates regulated water utility and wastewater systems. It operates in Regulated and Non-Regulated segments. The Regulated segment collects, treats, and distributes water on a retail and wholesale basis to residential, commercial, industrial, and fire protection customers, as well as provides regulated wastewater systems in New Jersey and Delaware.