Artesian Resources (NASDAQ:ARTNA) Issues Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.03 EPS

Artesian Resources (NASDAQ:ARTNA) released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday. The utilities provider reported $0.40 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.37 by $0.03, Zacks reports. The business had revenue of $28.02 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $28.00 million. Artesian Resources had a net margin of 20.72% and a return on equity of 9.51%.

Artesian Resources Price Performance

ARTNA stock traded up $0.32 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $32.71. 27,623 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 35,216. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $33.16 and a 200-day moving average price of $32.63. Artesian Resources has a 52-week low of $30.50 and a 52-week high of $36.19. The company has a market capitalization of $337.28 million, a P/E ratio of 14.90 and a beta of 0.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 0.68 and a quick ratio of 0.54.

Artesian Resources Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 25th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 13th were issued a dividend of $0.3136 per share. This represents a $1.25 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 13th. Artesian Resources’s payout ratio is presently 57.08%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Zacks Research raised shares of Artesian Resources from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Artesian Resources in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold”.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Artesian Resources

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in Artesian Resources by 0.6% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 514,412 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $16,767,000 after acquiring an additional 3,079 shares during the period. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. purchased a new position in shares of Artesian Resources during the 2nd quarter valued at $5,034,000. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Artesian Resources by 1.8% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 109,114 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $3,451,000 after purchasing an additional 1,919 shares during the period. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Artesian Resources in the third quarter worth $3,048,000. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Artesian Resources by 10.6% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 72,289 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,360,000 after buying an additional 6,956 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.37% of the company’s stock.

About Artesian Resources

Artesian Resources Corporation (NASDAQ: ARTNA) is a publicly traded water and wastewater utility company headquartered in Wilmington, Delaware. The company provides regulated water distribution and wastewater collection services to residential, commercial and industrial customers. Through its operating subsidiaries, Artesian is subject to oversight by public utility commissions in Delaware, Maryland and Pennsylvania, ensuring the delivery of safe, high-quality water in compliance with state and federal standards.

Traced back to its roots as the Artesian Water Company founded in 1905, the organization has expanded its footprint through a combination of organic growth and strategic acquisitions.