Global Water Resources, Inc. (GWRS) To Go Ex-Dividend on September 16th

Global Water Resources, Inc. (NASDAQ:GWRS) declared a monthly dividend on Monday, August 31st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, September 16th will be given a dividend of 0.0253 per share by the utilities provider on Wednesday, September 30th. This represents a c) dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.5%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, September 16th.

Global Water Resources has decreased its dividend by an average of 0.1%per year over the last three years and has raised its dividend every year for the last 8 years. Global Water Resources has a payout ratio of 107.1% meaning the company cannot currently cover its dividend with earnings alone and is relying on its balance sheet to cover its dividend payments. Equities analysts expect Global Water Resources to earn $0.13 per share next year, which means the company may not be able to cover its $0.30 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 230.8%.

Global Water Resources Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:GWRS opened at $8.71 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.62. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $7.99 and a 200-day moving average price of $7.64. The company has a market cap of $250.85 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 79.19 and a beta of 0.93. Global Water Resources has a 12 month low of $6.55 and a 12 month high of $11.17.

Global Water Resources (NASDAQ:GWRS) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 13th. The utilities provider reported $0.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.03 by $0.01. Global Water Resources had a return on equity of 3.05% and a net margin of 5.22%.The company had revenue of $17.77 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.93 million. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Global Water Resources will post 0.09 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Global Water Resources

In related news, Director Andrew Cohn purchased 139,343 shares of Global Water Resources stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 20th. The shares were bought at an average price of $8.85 per share, for a total transaction of $1,233,185.55. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 2,701,350 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $23,906,947.50. This represents a 5.44% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 53.70% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Global Water Resources

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its position in Global Water Resources by 20.1% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 103,024 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,062,000 after acquiring an additional 17,257 shares in the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC bought a new position in Global Water Resources in the first quarter worth $109,000. Rhumbline Advisers raised its holdings in Global Water Resources by 12.0% in the first quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 17,595 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $181,000 after purchasing an additional 1,884 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Global Water Resources by 10.3% in the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 299,330 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $3,050,000 after purchasing an additional 27,850 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE lifted its position in Global Water Resources by 30.7% during the second quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 40,661 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $414,000 after buying an additional 9,539 shares during the period. 27.91% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Global Water Resources

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.