Analysts Set Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp. (NYSE:AQN) Target Price at $6.18

Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp. (NYSE:AQN) has earned a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the eleven analysts that are covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price target among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $6.18.

Several analysts have issued reports on AQN shares. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on Algonquin Power & Utilities from $6.00 to $5.50 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and set a $6.00 target price on shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities in a report on Friday, October 11th. CIBC lowered their price target on shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities from $5.75 to $5.50 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Desjardins reduced their price objective on Algonquin Power & Utilities from $5.50 to $5.25 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, August 12th. Finally, Scotiabank lowered their target price on Algonquin Power & Utilities from $5.75 to $5.25 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 8th.

Algonquin Power & Utilities Stock Performance

Algonquin Power & Utilities stock opened at $4.76 on Wednesday. Algonquin Power & Utilities has a fifty-two week low of $4.67 and a fifty-two week high of $6.79. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $5.10 and its 200-day moving average price is $5.65. The stock has a market cap of $3.65 billion, a P/E ratio of -3.71 and a beta of 0.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a current ratio of 0.92.

Algonquin Power & Utilities (NYSE:AQN) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The utilities provider reported $0.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.09 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $573.20 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $620.46 million. Algonquin Power & Utilities had a positive return on equity of 5.22% and a negative net margin of 39.12%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.11 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Algonquin Power & Utilities will post 0.4 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Algonquin Power & Utilities Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be issued a dividend of $0.065 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $0.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.47%. Algonquin Power & Utilities’s dividend payout ratio is presently -20.16%.

Institutional Trading of Algonquin Power & Utilities

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities by 1.0% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 26,248,892 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $165,893,000 after purchasing an additional 262,333 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can lifted its holdings in Algonquin Power & Utilities by 6.0% in the third quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 20,882,966 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $115,175,000 after buying an additional 1,190,236 shares during the period. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. boosted its position in Algonquin Power & Utilities by 5.1% during the 3rd quarter. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. now owns 17,190,084 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $93,918,000 after acquiring an additional 832,739 shares in the last quarter. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp grew its holdings in shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities by 45.5% during the 3rd quarter. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp now owns 12,959,770 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $70,806,000 after acquiring an additional 4,054,711 shares during the period. Finally, National Bank of Canada FI raised its position in shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities by 3.4% in the 2nd quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 10,565,940 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $61,759,000 after acquiring an additional 342,528 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 62.28% of the company’s stock.

Algonquin Power & Utilities Company Profile

Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp. operates in the power and utility industries in the United States, Canada, and other regions. The company operates in two segments, Regulated Services Group and Renewable Energy Group. The company primarily owns and operates a regulated electric, water distribution and wastewater collection, and natural gas utility systems and transmission operations.