Middlesex Water (NASDAQ:MSEX) Shares Sold by Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund

Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund decreased its holdings in Middlesex Water (NASDAQ:MSEX) by 7.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 9,852 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 822 shares during the period. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund owned about 0.06% of Middlesex Water worth $646,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV grew its stake in shares of Middlesex Water by 114.9% in the fourth quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV now owns 1,923 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $126,000 after acquiring an additional 1,028 shares in the last quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Middlesex Water by 138.3% in the third quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 2,903 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $192,000 after acquiring an additional 1,685 shares in the last quarter. Crestwood Advisors Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Middlesex Water in the third quarter worth $212,000. WINTON GROUP Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Middlesex Water in the third quarter worth $217,000. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Middlesex Water by 6,462.7% in the fourth quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 3,347 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $220,000 after acquiring an additional 3,296 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.52% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Middlesex Water

In related news, Director James F. Jr. Cosgrove purchased 1,600 shares of Middlesex Water stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 6th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $51.70 per share, with a total value of $82,720.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 9,342 shares in the company, valued at $482,981.40. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 1.86% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Robert W. Baird lowered their target price on shares of Middlesex Water from $69.00 to $59.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, March 1st.

Middlesex Water Stock Performance

Shares of MSEX stock opened at $50.44 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.05, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $50.32 and a 200 day moving average price of $58.58. The company has a market cap of $898.34 million, a P/E ratio of 28.66 and a beta of 0.74. Middlesex Water has a 12 month low of $45.42 and a 12 month high of $84.38.

Middlesex Water (NASDAQ:MSEX) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 29th. The utilities provider reported $0.32 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.46 by ($0.14). The firm had revenue of $38.60 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $41.00 million. Middlesex Water had a return on equity of 7.61% and a net margin of 18.96%. Sell-side analysts predict that Middlesex Water will post 2.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Middlesex Water Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 3rd. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.325 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 14th. This represents a $1.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.58%. Middlesex Water’s payout ratio is currently 73.86%.

About Middlesex Water

Middlesex Water Company owns and operates regulated water utility and wastewater systems. It operates in Regulated and Non-Regulated segments. The Regulated segment collects, treats, and distributes water on a retail and wholesale basis to residential, commercial, industrial, and fire protection customers, as well as provides regulated wastewater systems in New Jersey and Delaware.