Swiss National Bank Purchases 800 Shares of Middlesex Water (NASDAQ:MSEX)

Swiss National Bank boosted its position in shares of Middlesex Water (NASDAQ:MSEX – Get Rating) by 1.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 42,462 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 800 shares during the period. Swiss National Bank’s holdings in Middlesex Water were worth $3,340,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of MSEX. Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its holdings in Middlesex Water by 23.9% during the 4th quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 6,564 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $516,000 after purchasing an additional 1,268 shares in the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System lifted its position in Middlesex Water by 4.1% during the 4th quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 4,969 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $391,000 after buying an additional 197 shares in the last quarter. LPL Financial LLC increased its position in Middlesex Water by 13.8% in the 4th quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 5,570 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $438,000 after acquiring an additional 677 shares in the last quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake 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 worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 300 shares during the last quarter. Finally, ProShare Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Middlesex Water by 13.2% during the fourth quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 104,910 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $8,253,000 after purchasing an additional 12,216 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.27% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently weighed in on MSEX shares. Robert W. Baird dropped their price objective on shares of Middlesex Water from $88.00 to $85.00 in a research report on Tuesday, May 2nd. StockNews.com began coverage on Middlesex Water in a research note on Thursday. They issued a “sell” rating for the company.

Middlesex Water Stock Performance

Middlesex Water stock opened at $75.29 on Monday. Middlesex Water has a 1 year low of $66.51 and a 1 year high of $96.19. The company’s 50-day moving average is $76.27 and its two-hundred day moving average is $82.21. The company has a current ratio of 0.41, a quick ratio of 0.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82. The company has a market cap of $1.33 billion, a PE ratio of 37.09 and a beta of 0.76.

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

Middlesex Water Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 1st. Investors of record on Friday, May 12th will be issued a $0.313 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 11th. This represents a $1.25 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.66%. Middlesex Water’s dividend payout ratio is presently 61.58%.

Middlesex Water Profile

(Get Rating)

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.