Middlesex Water (NASDAQ:MSEX) Stock Rating Upgraded by StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Middlesex Water (NASDAQ:MSEX) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a report published on Friday morning.

A number of other brokerages have also issued reports on MSEX. Baird R W upgraded shares of Middlesex Water from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Robert W. Baird raised Middlesex Water from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $61.00 price objective for the company in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Finally, Janney Montgomery Scott reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Middlesex Water in a report on Friday, April 4th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $58.50.

Middlesex Water Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ MSEX opened at $62.66 on Friday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $59.00 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $58.81. Middlesex Water has a fifty-two week low of $47.40 and a fifty-two week high of $70.73. The firm has a market cap of $1.12 billion, a PE ratio of 27.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 0.80. The company has a quick ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80.

Middlesex Water (NASDAQ:MSEX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, February 28th. The utilities provider reported $0.49 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.36 by $0.13. The business had revenue of $47.11 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $45.00 million. Middlesex Water had a net margin of 22.53% and a return on equity of 9.58%. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.32 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Middlesex Water will post 2.34 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Middlesex Water Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 3rd. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 18th were given a dividend of $0.34 per share. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.17%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 18th. Middlesex Water’s dividend payout ratio is presently 55.06%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Dennis W. Doll sold 4,067 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.05, for a total transaction of $244,223.35. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 52,112 shares in the company, valued at $3,129,325.60. This represents a 7.24 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 1.86% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Middlesex Water

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Sterling Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Middlesex Water by 771.9% in the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 497 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 440 shares during the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP increased its stake in shares of Middlesex Water by 1,136.4% in the fourth quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 544 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 500 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Middlesex Water by 1,006.4% during the fourth quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 520 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 473 shares during the last quarter. Crowley Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Middlesex Water during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Finally, CX Institutional acquired a new position in shares of Middlesex Water during the first quarter worth approximately $38,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.52% of the company’s stock.

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.