Fmr LLC Acquires 618 Shares of Middlesex Water (NASDAQ:MSEX)

Fmr LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Middlesex Water (NASDAQ:MSEX) by 9.7% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 7,018 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 618 shares during the period. Fmr LLC’s holdings in Middlesex Water were worth $458,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co. acquired a new position in Middlesex Water during the 2nd quarter worth $2,016,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its position in shares of Middlesex Water by 12.5% during the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 219,119 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $11,451,000 after acquiring an additional 24,400 shares during the last quarter. IQ EQ FUND MANAGEMENT IRELAND Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Middlesex Water during the third quarter valued at $1,392,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its holdings in Middlesex Water by 89.0% in the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 74,946 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $4,889,000 after acquiring an additional 35,282 shares during the last quarter. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC increased its position in Middlesex Water by 479.7% in the third quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 23,366 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,524,000 after purchasing an additional 19,335 shares during the period. 79.52% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on shares of Middlesex Water from $58.00 to $61.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Bank of America initiated coverage on shares of Middlesex Water in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. They issued an “underperform” rating and a $56.00 price objective on the stock.

Middlesex Water Stock Down 1.3 %

Shares of Middlesex Water stock opened at $54.84 on Friday. Middlesex Water has a 12 month low of $45.42 and a 12 month high of $71.16. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $64.07 and a 200 day simple moving average of $61.38. The company has a quick ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80. The stock has a market cap of $979.17 million, a PE ratio of 23.84 and a beta of 0.82.

Middlesex Water (NASDAQ:MSEX) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The utilities provider reported $0.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.67 by $0.13. Middlesex Water had a return on equity of 9.58% and a net margin of 22.53%. The company had revenue of $55.10 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $50.00 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.56 EPS. Research analysts predict that Middlesex Water will post 2.34 EPS for the current year.

Middlesex Water Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 15th were issued a $0.34 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 15th. This is a positive change from Middlesex Water’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.33. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.48%. Middlesex Water’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 59.13%.

Middlesex Water Company Profile

Middlesex Water Company owns and operates regulated water utility and wastewater systems. It operates in Regulated and Non-Regulated segments. The Regulated segment collects, treats, and distributes water on a retail and wholesale basis to residential, commercial, industrial, and fire protection customers, as well as provides regulated wastewater systems in New Jersey and Delaware.