Jericho Financial LLP Makes New $3.51 Million Investment in American Water Works Company, Inc. $AWK

Jericho Financial LLP bought a new position in shares of American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 26,642 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $3,506,000. American Water Works comprises about 1.8% of Jericho Financial LLP’s portfolio, making the stock its 26th biggest holding.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AWK. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in shares of American Water Works in the 2nd quarter valued at $2,712,173,000. State Street Corp increased its position in shares of American Water Works by 4.2% during the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 12,037,823 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,570,936,000 after purchasing an additional 486,090 shares during the last quarter. GQG Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of American Water Works during the 2nd quarter worth about $1,171,477,000. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its holdings in American Water Works by 3,274.6% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 7,092,757 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $925,605,000 after buying an additional 6,882,575 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in American Water Works by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,039,122 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $655,025,000 after buying an additional 33,359 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.58% of the company’s stock.

American Water Works Price Performance

AWK opened at $135.66 on Monday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $132.95 and its 200 day moving average price is $131.54. American Water Works Company, Inc. has a 12-month low of $120.57 and a 12-month high of $147.84. The firm has a market cap of $26.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.51, a PEG ratio of 2.76 and a beta of 0.60. The company has a current ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 0.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.20.

American Water Works (NYSE:AWK) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The utilities provider reported $1.61 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.53 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $1.35 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.33 billion. American Water Works had a return on equity of 10.20% and a net margin of 21.35%.American Water Works’s revenue was up 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.48 earnings per share. American Water Works has set its FY 2026 guidance at 6.020-6.120 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that American Water Works Company, Inc. will post 6.09 earnings per share for the current year.

American Water Works Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 11th will be issued a $0.895 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, August 11th. This represents a $3.58 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.6%. American Water Works’s dividend payout ratio is presently 62.05%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have commented on the stock. Wall Street Zen raised shares of American Water Works from a “strong sell” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Truist Financial set a $139.00 price target on shares of American Water Works in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. Mizuho upped their price objective on shares of American Water Works from $130.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, July 31st. Bank of America reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of American Water Works in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of American Water Works in a report on Wednesday, June 24th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, American Water Works currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $138.78.

American Water Works Company Profile

American Water Works Company, Inc (NYSE: AWK) is a publicly traded utility company that provides water and wastewater services in the United States. Its core business is the operation, management and maintenance of regulated water and wastewater systems that deliver potable water, collect and treat wastewater, and provide related customer services to residential, commercial and industrial customers as well as municipalities. The company’s operations include water treatment and distribution, wastewater collection and treatment, meter reading and billing, emergency repairs, and long-term infrastructure planning and capital project execution.

In addition to its regulated utility operations, American Water offers complementary nonregulated services and solutions that support system reliability and customer needs.