Consolidated Water (NASDAQ:CWCO) Stock Rating Cut to Strong Sell at Zacks Research

Consolidated Water (NASDAQ:CWCO) was downgraded by stock analysts at Zacks Research from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report released on Thursday, Zacks reports.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently weighed in on CWCO. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Consolidated Water from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a report on Tuesday. Wall Street Zen cut Consolidated Water from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Consolidated Water has a consensus rating of “Reduce”.

Consolidated Water Price Performance

CWCO traded down $0.39 on Thursday, hitting $24.90. The company had a trading volume of 143,288 shares, compared to its average volume of 130,344. Consolidated Water has a 52-week low of $24.86 and a 52-week high of $39.12. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $28.11 and a 200-day simple moving average of $31.08. The firm has a market capitalization of $398.65 million, a P/E ratio of 30.00 and a beta of 0.56.

Consolidated Water (NASDAQ:CWCO) last posted its earnings results on Monday, November 9th. The utilities provider reported $0.15 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.23 by ($0.08). The firm had revenue of $30.92 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $32.10 million. Consolidated Water had a return on equity of 5.81% and a net margin of 10.49%. Equities research analysts expect that Consolidated Water will post 0.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Raymond Whittaker sold 1,000 shares of Consolidated Water stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.93, for a total value of $28,930.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 2,038 shares in the company, valued at approximately $58,959.34. This trade represents a 32.92% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 5.81% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Consolidated Water

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CWCO. Heartland Advisors Inc. grew its position in shares of Consolidated Water by 4.3% during the 3rd quarter. Heartland Advisors Inc. now owns 311,200 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $8,720,000 after acquiring an additional 12,750 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in shares of Consolidated Water by 1.1% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 293,593 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $9,724,000 after acquiring an additional 3,210 shares during the period. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership purchased a new stake in Consolidated Water in the 1st quarter worth approximately $1,241,000. Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its holdings in Consolidated Water by 4.6% in the 3rd quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 31,460 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $882,000 after acquiring an additional 1,390 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Commonwealth Equity Services LLC raised its stake in Consolidated Water by 65.2% during the 3rd quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 18,591 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $521,000 after acquiring an additional 7,338 shares during the period. 55.16% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Consolidated Water Company Profile

Consolidated Water Co. Ltd. develops and operates water treatment and desalination facilities, with a focus on seawater reverse osmosis. The company produces and supplies potable water to public utilities and other customers, and provides engineering, procurement, construction and operating services for water projects. Founded in 1970, the company has a longstanding presence in the Caribbean. Its water operations include the Cayman Islands and the Bahamas, and it has also served customers in the British Virgin Islands.