Q4 EPS Estimate for American Water Works Raised by Analyst

American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK) – Zacks Research boosted their Q4 2024 earnings per share estimates for American Water Works in a report issued on Thursday, December 5th. Zacks Research analyst R. Department now expects that the utilities provider will post earnings of $1.11 per share for the quarter, up from their prior forecast of $1.10. The consensus estimate for American Water Works’ current full-year earnings is $5.28 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for American Water Works’ FY2026 earnings at $6.11 EPS.

A number of other research analysts also recently weighed in on the stock. Mizuho downgraded shares of American Water Works from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and raised their target price for the company from $131.00 to $140.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. Wolfe Research raised American Water Works to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 18th. UBS Group raised American Water Works from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the company from $151.00 to $155.00 in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on American Water Works in a research report on Monday, October 7th. They set an “underperform” rating and a $124.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Bank of America reissued an “underperform” rating and issued a $140.00 price objective on shares of American Water Works in a report on Friday, September 20th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $142.29.

American Water Works Price Performance

Shares of AWK opened at $132.37 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.53, a current ratio of 0.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21. American Water Works has a twelve month low of $113.34 and a twelve month high of $150.68. The stock has a market capitalization of $25.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.21, a P/E/G ratio of 3.05 and a beta of 0.70. The company has a 50 day moving average of $137.73 and a 200-day moving average of $137.86.

Institutional Trading of American Water Works

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Wulff Hansen & CO. boosted its position in shares of American Water Works by 12,816.0% in the second quarter. Wulff Hansen & CO. now owns 1,464,674 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $189,177,000 after acquiring an additional 1,453,334 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in American Water Works by 1,131.1% during the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,438,137 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $210,313,000 after purchasing an additional 1,321,320 shares during the last quarter. Groupama Asset Managment raised its holdings in shares of American Water Works by 4,227.0% during the 3rd quarter. Groupama Asset Managment now owns 711,927 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $104,000 after buying an additional 695,474 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its position in shares of American Water Works by 14,944.4% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 537,987 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $786,750,000 after buying an additional 534,411 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its stake in American Water Works by 631.4% in the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 445,788 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $65,192,000 after buying an additional 384,836 shares in the last quarter. 86.58% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

American Water Works Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 7th will be paid a dividend of $0.765 per share. This represents a $3.06 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.31%. American Water Works’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 60.59%.

American Water Works Company Profile

American Water Works Company, Inc, through its subsidiaries, provides water and wastewater services in the United States. It offers water and wastewater services to approximately 1,700 communities in 14 states serving approximately 3.5 million active customers. The company serves residential customers; commercial customers, including food and beverage providers, commercial property developers and proprietors, and energy suppliers; fire service and private fire customers; industrial customers, such as large-scale manufacturers, mining, and production operations; public authorities comprising government buildings and other public sector facilities, such as schools and universities; and other utilities and community water and wastewater systems.