American States Water (NYSE:AWR) Price Target Increased to $80.00 by Analysts at Wells Fargo & Company

American States Water (NYSE:AWR) had its target price upped by research analysts at Wells Fargo & Company from $77.00 to $80.00 in a research note issued to investors on Thursday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an “underweight” rating on the utilities provider’s stock. Wells Fargo & Company‘s price target would suggest a potential upside of 2.77% from the company’s current price.

American States Water Trading Up 1.7 %

Shares of AWR traded up $1.32 on Thursday, hitting $77.84. 57,348 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 229,354. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $70.96 and its two-hundred day moving average is $75.87. The company has a quick ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.12. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.86, a P/E/G ratio of 3.88 and a beta of 0.43. American States Water has a 1 year low of $66.03 and a 1 year high of $92.85.

American States Water (NYSE:AWR) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 7th. The utilities provider reported $0.62 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.62. American States Water had a net margin of 20.97% and a return on equity of 13.54%. The firm had revenue of $135.30 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $119.00 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.54 earnings per share. American States Water’s revenue for the quarter was down 16.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that American States Water will post 3.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Thomas A. Eichelberger purchased 1,400 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 28th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $71.21 per share, for a total transaction of $99,694.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 5,850 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $416,578.50. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.82% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Assetmark Inc. boosted its position in American States Water by 633.3% during the fourth quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 352 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 304 shares during the last quarter. Northwest Financial Advisors acquired a new stake in shares of American States Water during the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. Principal Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in American States Water in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Column Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in American States Water in the third quarter worth approximately $35,000. Finally, TFO Wealth Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of American States Water by 44,000.0% during the 4th quarter. TFO Wealth Partners LLC now owns 441 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 440 shares during the last quarter. 75.24% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About American States Water

American States Water Company, through its subsidiaries, provides water and electric services to residential, commercial, industrial, and other customers in the United States. It operates through three segments: Water, Electric, and Contracted Services. The company purchases, produces, distributes, and sells water, as well as distributes electricity.