American States Water (NYSE:AWR) Downgraded by Wells Fargo & Company to Underweight

American States Water (NYSE:AWR) was downgraded by Wells Fargo & Company from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday,Finviz reports. They presently have a $77.00 price target on the utilities provider’s stock, down from their prior price target of $84.00. Wells Fargo & Company‘s price objective would indicate a potential upside of 3.31% from the stock’s previous close.

AWR has been the topic of several other reports. StockNews.com downgraded shares of American States Water from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 27th. Bank of America began coverage on shares of American States Water in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $85.00 price target on the stock.

American States Water Stock Down 2.4 %

Shares of NYSE:AWR opened at $74.53 on Tuesday. American States Water has a 52-week low of $66.03 and a 52-week high of $87.50. The company has a market capitalization of $2.79 billion, a PE ratio of 25.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.77 and a beta of 0.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a current ratio of 0.69. The company has a fifty day moving average of $82.34 and a 200-day moving average of $81.30.

American States Water (NYSE:AWR) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.95 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.98 by ($0.03). American States Water had a return on equity of 13.53% and a net margin of 19.26%. The firm had revenue of $161.78 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $161.00 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.85 EPS. American States Water’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that American States Water will post 3.02 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC raised its stake in American States Water by 2.4% during the second quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 47,387 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $3,439,000 after buying an additional 1,100 shares during the last quarter. Rhumbline Advisers raised its position in shares of American States Water by 1.7% in the 2nd quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 141,495 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $10,268,000 after acquiring an additional 2,344 shares in the last quarter. TD Asset Management Inc raised its position in shares of American States Water by 2.1% in the 2nd quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 62,500 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $4,536,000 after acquiring an additional 1,300 shares in the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of American States Water by 182.8% in the 2nd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 220,718 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $16,018,000 after purchasing an additional 142,664 shares during the period. Finally, Arizona State Retirement System boosted its position in shares of American States Water by 2.5% during the 2nd quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 10,421 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $756,000 after purchasing an additional 258 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 75.24% of the company’s stock.

American States Water Company Profile

American States Water Company, through its subsidiaries, provides water and electric services to residential, commercial, industrial, and other customers in the United States. It operates through three segments: Water, Electric, and Contracted Services. The company purchases, produces, distributes, and sells water, as well as distributes electricity.