Short Interest in American States Water Company (NYSE:AWR) Expands By 25.8%

American States Water Company (NYSE:AWR) saw a significant growth in short interest in February. As of February 27th, there was short interest totaling 912,552 shares, a growth of 25.8% from the February 12th total of 725,679 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 270,260 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 3.4 days. Approximately 2.4% of the company’s shares are short sold. Approximately 2.4% of the company’s shares are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 270,260 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 3.4 days.

American States Water Stock Down 1.1%

Shares of AWR stock traded down $0.82 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $74.48. 58,253 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 244,339. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88, a quick ratio of 1.23 and a current ratio of 1.32. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $73.76 and its 200 day simple moving average is $73.51. The company has a market capitalization of $2.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.10, a P/E/G ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.69. American States Water has a fifty-two week low of $69.45 and a fifty-two week high of $82.94.

American States Water (NYSE:AWR) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 18th. The utilities provider reported $0.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.68 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $164.28 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $168.82 million. American States Water had a net margin of 19.82% and a return on equity of 13.10%. Research analysts predict that American States Water will post 3.34 earnings per share for the current year.

American States Water Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 5th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 23rd were given a dividend of $0.504 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 23rd. This represents a $2.02 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.7%. American States Water’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 59.64%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of American States Water in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $84.00.

Institutional Trading of American States Water

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Baird Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in American States Water by 23.7% during the first quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 3,260 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $256,000 after buying an additional 625 shares in the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its position in shares of American States Water by 6.0% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 24,700 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,943,000 after acquiring an additional 1,388 shares in the last quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp raised its position in shares of American States Water by 768.9% during the 1st quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 4,701 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $370,000 after acquiring an additional 4,160 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its stake in American States Water by 9.8% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 284,620 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $22,394,000 after purchasing an additional 25,333 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC boosted its holdings in American States Water by 2,606.4% in the first quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 89,717 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $7,059,000 after purchasing an additional 86,402 shares during the period. 75.24% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

American States Water Company Profile

American States Water Company (NYSE: AWR), founded in 1929 and headquartered in San Dimas, California, is a publicly traded utility holding company. The company operates primarily through two regulated segments—water and electric utilities—and provides non-regulated water system services. Over its history, American States Water has expanded its footprint through strategic acquisitions and organic growth, positioning itself as a reliable provider of essential services in its core territories.

Within its regulated water utility segment, American States Water serves more than 250,000 residential, commercial and industrial customers across 35 communities in six counties of California.