H2O America (NASDAQ:HTO) Downgraded to Sell Rating by Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of H2O America (NASDAQ:HTO) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research report report published on Saturday.

HTO has been the subject of several other reports. Bank of America reissued a “buy” rating on shares of H2O America in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. BTIG Research set a $70.00 price target on shares of H2O America in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. TD Cowen initiated coverage on H2O America in a report on Thursday, April 16th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $64.00 price target on the stock. Barclays lifted their target price on H2O America from $60.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of H2O America in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $65.67.

H2O America Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ HTO opened at $62.66 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $60.50 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $57.84. The firm has a market cap of $2.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.14, a PEG ratio of 6.46 and a beta of 0.34. H2O America has a 1 year low of $43.75 and a 1 year high of $67.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 1.67 and a current ratio of 1.67.

H2O America (NASDAQ:HTO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 27th. The utilities provider reported $0.72 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.70 by $0.02. H2O America had a net margin of 12.91% and a return on equity of 6.65%. The firm had revenue of $210.47 million for the quarter. H2O America has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.080-3.180 EPS. Research analysts forecast that H2O America will post 3.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

H2O America Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 10th will be given a dividend of $0.44 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 10th. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.8%. H2O America’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 62.19%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other H2O America news, major shareholder Atlas Infrastructure Partners bought 2,784 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 7th. The shares were bought at an average price of $62.03 per share, for a total transaction of $172,691.52. Following the acquisition, the insider directly owned 4,615,265 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $286,284,887.95. This trade represents a 0.06% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.52% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of H2O America

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in HTO. Nuance Investments LLC acquired a new position in H2O America in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $9,386,000. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of H2O America during the 2nd quarter valued at $431,857,000. Deutsche Bank AG acquired a new stake in shares of H2O America during the 2nd quarter valued at $3,466,000. Perigon Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of H2O America during the 2nd quarter valued at $388,000. Finally, Phillips Wealth Planners LLC purchased a new position in shares of H2O America during the 2nd quarter valued at $227,000. 84.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About H2O America

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.