Artesian Resources (NASDAQ:ARTNA) Upgraded to Hold at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Artesian Resources (NASDAQ:ARTNA) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a research note published on Thursday.

Separately, TheStreet downgraded shares of Artesian Resources from a b- rating to a c+ rating in a report on Monday, February 5th.

Artesian Resources Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:ARTNA opened at $34.37 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 1.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. The stock has a market capitalization of $353.67 million, a PE ratio of 20.70 and a beta of 0.18. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $35.60 and its 200-day moving average price is $38.81. Artesian Resources has a twelve month low of $33.42 and a twelve month high of $57.69.

Artesian Resources (NASDAQ:ARTNA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, March 13th. The utilities provider reported $0.34 EPS for the quarter. The firm had revenue of $24.55 million during the quarter. Artesian Resources had a return on equity of 7.62% and a net margin of 16.89%. Equities research analysts expect that Artesian Resources will post 1.99 EPS for the current year.

Artesian Resources Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 23rd. Investors of record on Friday, February 9th were given a $0.29 dividend. This represents a $1.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.38%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 8th. Artesian Resources’s dividend payout ratio is presently 69.88%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Rhumbline Advisers boosted its stake in Artesian Resources by 1.9% during the first quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 12,107 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $670,000 after buying an additional 226 shares during the period. LPL Financial LLC boosted its stake in shares of Artesian Resources by 0.6% during the 3rd quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 40,694 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,709,000 after purchasing an additional 253 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in Artesian Resources by 1.2% during the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 21,599 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,196,000 after purchasing an additional 262 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC raised its position in Artesian Resources by 9.3% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,241 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $136,000 after purchasing an additional 277 shares during the period. Finally, Captrust Financial Advisors lifted its stake in Artesian Resources by 7.8% in the second quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 4,203 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $207,000 after purchasing an additional 305 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 57.37% of the company’s stock.

About Artesian Resources

Artesian Resources Corporation, through its subsidiaries, provides water, wastewater, and other services in Delaware, Maryland, and Pennsylvania. The company distributes and sells water to residential, commercial, industrial, governmental, municipal, and utility customers, as well as for public and private fire protection in the states of Delaware, Maryland, and Pennsylvania; and offers wastewater collection, treatment infrastructure, and wastewater services to customers in Delaware.