Analysts Set Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp. (NYSE:AQN) PT at $6.13

Shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp. (NYSE:AQN) have earned an average rating of “Hold” from the eleven analysts that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12 month target price among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $6.13.

AQN has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $7.00 price objective on shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Scotiabank cut their target price on Algonquin Power & Utilities from $5.75 to $5.25 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a $6.00 target price on shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities in a research note on Friday, October 11th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on Algonquin Power & Utilities from $6.00 to $5.50 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, CIBC cut their target price on Algonquin Power & Utilities from $5.75 to $5.50 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd.

Algonquin Power & Utilities Trading Down 4.0 %

Shares of AQN stock opened at $4.29 on Thursday. 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 has a 52-week low of $4.25 and a 52-week high of $6.79. The company has a market capitalization of $3.29 billion, a PE ratio of -3.33 and a beta of 0.69. The business’s fifty day moving average is $4.64 and its 200 day moving average is $5.22.

Algonquin Power & Utilities (NYSE:AQN) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The utilities provider reported $0.08 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.09 by ($0.01). Algonquin Power & Utilities had a negative net margin of 39.12% and a positive return on equity of 5.22%. The firm had revenue of $573.20 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $620.46 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.11 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Algonquin Power & Utilities will post 0.39 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Algonquin Power & Utilities Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be paid a $0.065 dividend. This represents a $0.26 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.06%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 31st. Algonquin Power & Utilities’s payout ratio is currently -20.16%.

Institutional Trading of Algonquin Power & Utilities

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Bank of Montreal Can grew its holdings in Algonquin Power & Utilities by 6.0% during the 3rd quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 20,882,966 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $115,175,000 after purchasing an additional 1,190,236 shares during the last quarter. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. grew its holdings 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 purchasing an additional 832,739 shares during the last quarter. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp grew its holdings in 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 valued at $70,806,000 after purchasing an additional 4,054,711 shares during the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its holdings in Algonquin Power & Utilities by 6.1% during the 3rd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 7,720,474 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $42,105,000 after purchasing an additional 447,246 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Point72 Asset Management L.P. grew its holdings in Algonquin Power & Utilities by 31.2% during the 2nd quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 5,956,389 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $34,989,000 after purchasing an additional 1,415,889 shares during the last quarter. 62.28% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Algonquin Power & Utilities

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.