Leith Wheeler Investment Counsel Ltd. Increases Stock Position in American States Water Company $AWR

Leith Wheeler Investment Counsel Ltd. raised its position in American States Water Company (NYSE:AWR) by 60.8% during the first quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 126,225 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 47,725 shares during the quarter. Leith Wheeler Investment Counsel Ltd.’s holdings in American States Water were worth $9,545,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Baird Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of American States Water by 23.7% in the first quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 3,260 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $256,000 after purchasing an additional 625 shares during the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its position in American States Water by 6.0% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 24,700 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,943,000 after purchasing an additional 1,388 shares during the last quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp lifted its holdings in American States Water by 768.9% in the 1st quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 4,701 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $370,000 after buying an additional 4,160 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its holdings in American States Water by 9.8% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 284,620 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $22,394,000 after buying an additional 25,333 shares during the period. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC grew its position in shares of American States Water by 2,606.4% in the 1st quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 89,717 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $7,059,000 after buying an additional 86,402 shares during the last quarter. 75.24% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

American States Water Price Performance

Shares of NYSE AWR opened at $88.52 on Tuesday. American States Water Company has a 1 year low of $69.45 and a 1 year high of $90.11. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.81, a P/E/G ratio of 3.47 and a beta of 0.59. The company’s 50-day moving average is $79.77 and its 200 day moving average is $76.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 1.22 and a quick ratio of 1.13.

American States Water (NYSE:AWR) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.76 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.77 by ($0.01). American States Water had a return on equity of 13.06% and a net margin of 19.66%.The company had revenue of $169.19 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $157.02 million. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.70 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 14.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts expect that American States Water Company will post 3.71 earnings per share for the current year.

American States Water Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 2nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 18th were paid a $0.504 dividend. This represents a $2.02 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 18th. American States Water’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 58.89%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AWR has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Freedom Capital raised American States Water to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, June 29th. Weiss Ratings raised American States Water from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. Finally, Zacks Research cut shares of American States Water from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, American States Water currently has a consensus rating of “Hold”.

Insider Activity at American States Water

In other American States Water news, Director Anne M. Holloway sold 662 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.58, for a total value of $50,033.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 39,418 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,979,212.44. This represents a 1.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Paul J. Rowley sold 1,304 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.05, for a total value of $99,169.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 6,520 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $495,846. This trade represents a 16.67% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders own 0.90% of the company’s stock.

American States Water Company Profile

American States Water Company (NYSE: AWR), founded in 1929 and headquartered in San Dimas, California, is a publicly traded utility holding company. The company operates primarily through two regulated segments—water and electric utilities—and provides non-regulated water system services. Over its history, American States Water has expanded its footprint through strategic acquisitions and organic growth, positioning itself as a reliable provider of essential services in its core territories.

Within its regulated water utility segment, American States Water serves more than 250,000 residential, commercial and industrial customers across 35 communities in six counties of California.