Commonwealth Equity Services LLC Sells 49,155 Shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp. (NYSE:AQN)

Commonwealth Equity Services LLC lessened its stake in shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp. (NYSE:AQN) by 17.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 237,335 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 49,155 shares during the period. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC’s holdings in Algonquin Power & Utilities were worth $1,056,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Private Management Group Inc. lifted its stake in Algonquin Power & Utilities by 161.2% in the fourth quarter. Private Management Group Inc. now owns 5,924,983 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $26,366,000 after acquiring an additional 3,656,840 shares during the last quarter. Yaupon Capital Management LP bought a new position in Algonquin Power & Utilities during the third quarter worth about $11,997,000. Krilogy Financial LLC increased its position in Algonquin Power & Utilities by 116.7% during the fourth quarter. Krilogy Financial LLC now owns 1,621,045 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $7,214,000 after buying an additional 873,045 shares during the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC raised its stake in Algonquin Power & Utilities by 321.5% in the third quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 1,124,923 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $6,147,000 after buying an additional 858,022 shares during the period. Finally, EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities by 5.1% in the third quarter. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. now owns 17,190,084 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $93,918,000 after buying an additional 832,739 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 62.28% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on AQN shares. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their target price on Algonquin Power & Utilities from $6.00 to $5.50 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Scotiabank increased their price objective on shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities from $5.25 to $5.50 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a “neutral” rating and set a $7.00 target price on shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, National Bankshares decreased their price target on shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities from $6.75 to $6.25 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $5.94.

Algonquin Power & Utilities Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:AQN opened at $5.15 on Tuesday. Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp. has a 12-month low of $4.19 and a 12-month high of $6.79. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $4.79 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $4.83. The firm has a market cap of $3.95 billion, a PE ratio of -3.99 and a beta of 0.71. The company has a quick ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17.

Algonquin Power & Utilities (NYSE:AQN) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, March 7th. The utilities provider reported $0.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.10 by ($0.04). The company had revenue of $584.80 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $644.73 million. Algonquin Power & Utilities had a positive return on equity of 5.22% and a negative net margin of 39.12%. Equities research analysts predict that Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp. will post 0.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Algonquin Power & Utilities Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a $0.065 dividend. This represents a $0.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.05%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. Algonquin Power & Utilities’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -14.44%.

Algonquin Power & Utilities Company Profile

Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp. is an investment holding company, which engages in energy generation and water distribution facilities. It operates through the Regulated Services Group and Renewable Energy Group segments. The Regulated Services Group segment owns and operates a portfolio of electric, natural gas, water distribution, and wastewater collection utility systems and transmission.