Algonquin Power & Utilities (NYSE:AQN) Sees Large Volume Increase Following Analyst Upgrade

Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp. (NYSE:AQN – Get Rating) saw unusually-strong trading volume on Friday after BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on the stock from C$7.00 to C$7.50. BMO Capital Markets currently has a market perform rating on the stock. Approximately 200,232 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 97% from the previous session’s volume of 7,688,783 shares.The stock last traded at $6.73 and had previously closed at $7.14.

Several other research analysts also recently commented on the stock. National Bank Financial downgraded shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities from an “outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Monday, November 14th. StockNews.com started coverage on shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities in a research note on Wednesday, October 12th. They set a “sell” rating on the stock. National Bankshares decreased their price target on shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities from $13.50 to $12.50 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, November 14th. TheStreet cut shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities from a “c” rating to a “d+” rating in a report on Friday, November 18th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $9.00 target price on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 5th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $10.22.

Institutional Trading of Algonquin Power & Utilities

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in AQN. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. boosted its holdings in Algonquin Power & Utilities by 138.2% in the second quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 6,507,328 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $87,453,000 after acquiring an additional 3,775,700 shares in the last quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia boosted its holdings in Algonquin Power & Utilities by 34.2% in the second quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 13,548,918 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $182,094,000 after acquiring an additional 3,449,550 shares in the last quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board boosted its holdings in Algonquin Power & Utilities by 237.4% in the third quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 2,369,900 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $26,027,000 after acquiring an additional 1,667,500 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Algonquin Power & Utilities by 113.5% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 2,575,200 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $39,967,000 after acquiring an additional 1,369,075 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Toronto Dominion Bank boosted its holdings in Algonquin Power & Utilities by 10.6% in the third quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 12,249,606 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $171,714,000 after acquiring an additional 1,170,031 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 41.26% of the company’s stock.

Algonquin Power & Utilities Trading Down 6.7 %

The firm has a market cap of $4.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 111.00, a PEG ratio of 3.32 and a beta of 0.48. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $7.53 and its two-hundred day moving average is $10.97. The company has a quick ratio of 0.56, a current ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.10.

Algonquin Power & Utilities Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 30th were issued a dividend of $0.181 per share. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 10.87%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, December 29th. This is a boost from Algonquin Power & Utilities’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.18. Algonquin Power & Utilities’s payout ratio is 1,200.00%.

Algonquin Power & Utilities Company Profile

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Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp. operates as a diversified utility company. The firm engages in the ownership and operation of a portfolio of regulated and non-regulated generation, distribution and transmission utility assets. It operates through the following segments: Regulated Services Group, and Renewable Energy Group.