Artesian Resources (NASDAQ:ARTNA) Announces Earnings Results

Artesian Resources (NASDAQ:ARTNA) issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday. The utilities provider reported $0.64 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.59 by $0.05, Zacks reports. Artesian Resources had a net margin of 20.18% and a return on equity of 9.42%. The company had revenue of $30.66 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $29.80 million.

Artesian Resources Stock Up 0.8%

Shares of Artesian Resources stock opened at $34.66 on Friday. Artesian Resources has a 12-month low of $30.50 and a 12-month high of $35.49. The firm has a market capitalization of $357.69 million, a PE ratio of 15.14 and a beta of 0.33. The company has a quick ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $33.57 and its 200-day moving average is $32.94.

Artesian Resources Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 28th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 17th will be given a dividend of $0.3199 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 17th. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.7%. Artesian Resources’s payout ratio is 56.64%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Artesian Resources from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Friday, July 17th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold”.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Artesian Resources

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