HighTower Advisors LLC Grows Stock Position in Middlesex Water (NASDAQ:MSEX)

HighTower Advisors LLC grew its position in Middlesex Water (NASDAQ:MSEX – Get Rating) by 6.2% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 43,777 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 2,545 shares during the quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC’s holdings in Middlesex Water were worth $3,447,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Middlesex Water by 2,142.9% in the fourth quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 314 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 300 shares in the last quarter. Belpointe Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Middlesex Water in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Captrust Financial Advisors increased its holdings in shares of Middlesex Water by 2,666.7% in the second quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 664 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $58,000 after purchasing an additional 640 shares during the last quarter. Concord Wealth Partners acquired a new stake in shares of Middlesex Water in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $71,000. Finally, Point72 Hong Kong Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Middlesex Water in the second quarter valued at approximately $152,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.27% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the company. StockNews.com assumed coverage on Middlesex Water in a report on Thursday. They issued a “sell” rating for the company. Robert W. Baird cut their price target on Middlesex Water from $88.00 to $85.00 in a report on Tuesday, May 2nd.

Middlesex Water Price Performance

MSEX stock opened at $75.29 on Friday. The business has a fifty day moving average of $76.27 and a two-hundred day moving average of $82.23. The company has a quick ratio of 0.34, a current ratio of 0.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82. The stock has a market cap of $1.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.09 and a beta of 0.76. Middlesex Water has a 52-week low of $66.51 and a 52-week high of $96.19.

Middlesex Water (NASDAQ:MSEX – Get Rating) last posted its earnings results on Friday, February 24th. The utilities provider reported $0.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.49 by ($0.09). The business had revenue of $38.82 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $39.00 million. Middlesex Water had a return on equity of 9.12% and a net margin of 22.02%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Middlesex Water will post 2.22 earnings per share for the current year.

Middlesex Water Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 12th will be paid a dividend of $0.313 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 11th. This represents a $1.25 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.66%. Middlesex Water’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 61.58%.

Middlesex Water Company Profile

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Middlesex Water Co owns and operates regulated water utility and wastewater systems. The firm’s services include water production, treatment, & distribution, full service municipal contract operations, wastewater collection and treatment. It operates through two segments: Regulated and Non-Regulated.