Global Water Resources, Inc. (NASDAQ:GWRS) Short Interest Update

Global Water Resources, Inc. (NASDAQ:GWRS) was the target of a large drop in short interest in February. As of February 27th, there was short interest totaling 211,080 shares, a drop of 13.3% from the February 12th total of 243,558 shares. Currently, 1.6% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 48,408 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 4.4 days. Based on an average daily volume of 48,408 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 4.4 days. Currently, 1.6% of the shares of the stock are short sold.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

GWRS has been the subject of several research reports. Weiss Ratings downgraded Global Water Resources from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Freedom Capital cut shares of Global Water Resources from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 5th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Global Water Resources presently has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $15.00.

Global Water Resources Price Performance

Shares of GWRS remained flat at $7.53 during trading hours on Wednesday. The company had a trading volume of 49,285 shares, compared to its average volume of 73,144. The company has a market cap of $216.56 million, a PE ratio of 75.31 and a beta of 0.96. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $8.62 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $9.17. Global Water Resources has a fifty-two week low of $7.12 and a fifty-two week high of $11.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.54, a current ratio of 0.76 and a quick ratio of 0.76.

Global Water Resources (NASDAQ:GWRS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, March 4th. The utilities provider reported ($0.01) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.04 by ($0.05). The firm had revenue of $13.54 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $13.73 million. Global Water Resources had a return on equity of 4.73% and a net margin of 5.30%. Research analysts predict that Global Water Resources will post 0.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Global Water Resources Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 17th will be issued a dividend of $0.0253 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 17th. This represents a c) annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.0%. Global Water Resources’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 300.00%.

Insider Activity at Global Water Resources

In related news, Director Andrew M. Cohn acquired 18,305 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 13th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $7.20 per share, with a total value of $131,796.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director owned 2,560,984 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,439,084.80. This represents a 0.72% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 54.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Global Water Resources

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in GWRS. TSP Capital Management Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Global Water Resources during the 3rd quarter valued at about $3,323,000. Handelsbanken Fonder AB boosted its position in shares of Global Water Resources by 9.8% in the second quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 1,675,000 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $17,068,000 after acquiring an additional 150,000 shares during the last quarter. Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC boosted its position in shares of Global Water Resources by 65.7% in the third quarter. Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC now owns 52,828 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $544,000 after acquiring an additional 20,938 shares during the last quarter. Police & Firemen s Retirement System of New Jersey purchased a new stake in Global Water Resources in the second quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Finally, Occudo Quantitative Strategies LP acquired a new position in Global Water Resources during the fourth quarter worth approximately $107,000. 27.91% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Global Water Resources Company Profile

Global Water Resources, Inc (NASDAQ:GWRS) is a publicly traded holding company based in Scottsdale, Arizona, specializing in the ownership and management of water and wastewater utilities. The company provides critical potable water delivery, wastewater collection and treatment, and reclaimed water services to residential, commercial and industrial customers across select communities in Central and Southern Arizona.

The company operates multiple regulated utility systems, serving communities such as Anthem, Biltmore, Florence and San Tan Valley.