American States Water (NYSE:AWR) Short Interest Up 14.8% in May

American States Water (NYSE:AWR) was the recipient of a significant increase in short interest in the month of May. As of May 31st, there was short interest totalling 390,000 shares, an increase of 14.8% from the May 15th total of 339,600 shares. Approximately 1.1% of the company’s shares are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 234,700 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 1.7 days.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on American States Water from $77.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 9th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Mary Ann Hopkins bought 560 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 30th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $71.53 per share, for a total transaction of $40,056.80. Following the transaction, the director now owns 3,606 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $257,937.18. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other American States Water news, Director Thomas A. Eichelberger acquired 640 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 22nd. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $77.62 per share, for a total transaction of $49,676.80. Following the transaction, the director now owns 7,006 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $543,805.72. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Mary Ann Hopkins acquired 560 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 30th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $71.53 per share, with a total value of $40,056.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 3,606 shares in the company, valued at approximately $257,937.18. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.82% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Assetmark Inc. boosted its stake in American States Water by 633.3% in the fourth quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 352 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 304 shares in the last quarter. Northwest Financial Advisors acquired a new stake in American States Water in the fourth quarter valued at about $32,000. Principal Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in American States Water in the fourth quarter valued at about $34,000. TFO Wealth Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of American States Water by 44,000.0% during the fourth quarter. TFO Wealth Partners LLC now owns 441 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 440 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Anchor Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of American States Water during the fourth quarter valued at about $48,000. Institutional investors own 75.24% of the company’s stock.

American States Water Trading Up 0.1 %

NYSE AWR opened at $70.30 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $2.62 billion, a PE ratio of 22.97, a PEG ratio of 3.71 and a beta of 0.46. The company has a current ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09. American States Water has a 12 month low of $66.03 and a 12 month high of $89.93. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $72.52 and a 200-day moving average of $74.88.

American States Water (NYSE:AWR) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 8th. The utilities provider reported $0.62 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.62. American States Water had a return on equity of 13.65% and a net margin of 19.95%. The company had revenue of $135.30 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $119.00 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.54 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 16.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that American States Water will post 3.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American States Water Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 3rd. Investors of record on Monday, May 20th were given a $0.43 dividend. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.45%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 17th. American States Water’s payout ratio is currently 56.21%.

American States Water Company Profile

American States Water Company, through its subsidiaries, provides water and electric services to residential, commercial, industrial, and other customers in the United States. It operates through three segments: Water, Electric, and Contracted Services. The company purchases, produces, distributes, and sells water, as well as distributes electricity.