Dennis W. Doll Sells 4,067 Shares of Middlesex Water (NASDAQ:MSEX) Stock

Middlesex Water (NASDAQ:MSEX) Director Dennis W. Doll sold 4,067 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.05, for a total value of $244,223.35. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 52,112 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,129,325.60. The trade was a 7.24 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

Middlesex Water Stock Performance

MSEX opened at $60.59 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $1.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a quick ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $54.16 and its 200-day moving average price is $59.09. Middlesex Water has a 52-week low of $45.42 and a 52-week high of $70.73.

Middlesex Water (NASDAQ:MSEX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, February 28th. The utilities provider reported $0.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.36 by $0.13. The business had revenue of $47.11 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $45.00 million. Middlesex Water had a net margin of 22.53% and a return on equity of 9.58%. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.32 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Middlesex Water will post 2.34 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Middlesex Water Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 3rd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th were paid a $0.34 dividend. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.24%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 18th. Middlesex Water’s payout ratio is 55.06%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Middlesex Water

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its position in Middlesex Water by 15.3% during the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 56,873 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,993,000 after buying an additional 7,562 shares during the last quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC increased its stake in shares of Middlesex Water by 119.0% in the fourth quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 25,373 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,335,000 after acquiring an additional 13,786 shares during the period. Two Sigma Investments LP purchased a new position in shares of Middlesex Water during the fourth quarter worth $829,000. ProShare Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Middlesex Water by 13.5% during the fourth quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 133,629 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $7,033,000 after purchasing an additional 15,878 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Millennium Management LLC acquired a new position in Middlesex Water during the fourth quarter valued at $2,224,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.52% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MSEX has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Baird R W upgraded shares of Middlesex Water from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Robert W. Baird raised shares of Middlesex Water from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $61.00 target price for the company in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. StockNews.com raised shares of Middlesex Water from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 19th. Finally, Bank of America assumed coverage on Middlesex Water in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. They set an “underperform” rating and a $56.00 price objective for the company.

Middlesex Water Company Profile

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.