Middlesex Water (NASDAQ:MSEX) Now Covered by Analysts at Huntington Sec

Huntington Sec assumed coverage on shares of Middlesex Water (NASDAQ:MSEX) in a research report report published on Sunday morning,Zacks reports. The brokerage issued a strong-buy rating on the utilities provider’s stock.

A number of other analysts have also recently commented on MSEX. New Street Research set a $64.00 price target on Middlesex Water in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. Weiss Ratings raised Middlesex Water from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Monday, October 12th. Robert W. Baird set a $66.00 price target on shares of Middlesex Water in a report on Friday, July 31st. Finally, Freedom Broker lifted their price target on shares of Middlesex Water from $56.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $60.75.

Middlesex Water Trading Down 1.2%

NASDAQ MSEX opened at $57.64 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 0.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. Middlesex Water has a twelve month low of $48.19 and a twelve month high of $59.80. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.10 billion, a PE ratio of 20.81 and a beta of 0.71. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $55.47 and its 200 day moving average is $54.24.

Middlesex Water (NASDAQ:MSEX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 29th. The utilities provider reported $0.95 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.82 by $0.13. Middlesex Water had a return on equity of 10.08% and a net margin of 24.50%. The business had revenue of $60.21 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $59.90 million.

Middlesex Water Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 16th will be issued a dividend of $0.38 per share. This is a boost from Middlesex Water’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.36. This represents a $1.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 16th. Middlesex Water’s payout ratio is 51.99%.

Insider Activity at Middlesex Water

In other news, VP Lorrie Ginegaw sold 615 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.61, for a total value of $35,430.15. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president owned 3,978 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $229,172.58. This represents a 13.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 1.92% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Middlesex Water

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Ethic Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Middlesex Water by 5.7% in the third quarter. Ethic Inc. now owns 4,315 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $229,000 after purchasing an additional 233 shares in the last quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in Middlesex Water during the third quarter valued at approximately $53,000. ProShare Advisors LLC raised its position in Middlesex Water by 35.6% during the third quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 177,733 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $9,415,000 after purchasing an additional 46,667 shares during the period. State of Wyoming bought a new stake in shares of Middlesex Water in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $65,000. Finally, Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Middlesex Water by 5.0% in the 3rd quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 29,066 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,540,000 after purchasing an additional 1,374 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.52% of the company’s stock.

About Middlesex Water

Middlesex Water Company (NASDAQ:MSEX) is a regulated water and wastewater utility that owns and operates systems serving residential, commercial, industrial and municipal customers. Its services include the production, treatment, distribution and sale of potable water, as well as wastewater collection and treatment.

Founded in 1897, the company primarily serves communities in New Jersey and Delaware through its regulated utility operations. Its New Jersey service area includes portions of Middlesex, Union, Somerset and Mercer counties, while its Delaware operations serve customers through the Tidewater Utilities subsidiary.

Middlesex Water also provides contract operations, maintenance and related services for municipal and other public water and wastewater systems.