Algonquin Power & Utilities (NYSE:AQN) Lifted to “Strong-Buy” at National Bank Financial

National Bank Financial upgraded shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities (NYSE:AQN) from a hold rating to a strong-buy rating in a research note published on Monday, Zacks.com reports. National Bank Financial also issued estimates for Algonquin Power & Utilities’ Q3 2024 earnings at $0.11 EPS, FY2024 earnings at $0.47 EPS and FY2026 earnings at $0.45 EPS.

Several other brokerages have also recently issued reports on AQN. CIBC decreased their target price on shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities from $7.00 to $6.00 and set a neutral rating for the company in a report on Monday. StockNews.com raised shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities to a sell rating in a report on Friday, May 10th. National Bankshares increased their price objective on shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities from $6.75 to $7.25 and gave the company a sector perform rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 28th. Scotiabank lowered their price objective on shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities from $6.50 to $5.75 and set a sector perform rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Desjardins lowered their price objective on shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities from $5.50 to $5.25 and set a hold rating on the stock in a research report on Monday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of Hold and an average target price of $6.36.

Algonquin Power & Utilities Trading Up 0.2 %

NYSE:AQN opened at $5.12 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42, a current ratio of 0.98 and a quick ratio of 0.79. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.93 billion, a P/E ratio of -10.45 and a beta of 0.66. Algonquin Power & Utilities has a one year low of $4.90 and a one year high of $7.67. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $5.95 and its 200 day simple moving average is $6.08.

Algonquin Power & Utilities (NYSE:AQN) last issued its earnings results on Friday, August 9th. The utilities provider reported $0.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.08 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $598.60 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $635.95 million. Algonquin Power & Utilities had a negative net margin of 12.44% and a positive return on equity of 5.39%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.08 earnings per share. As a group, analysts forecast that Algonquin Power & Utilities will post 0.46 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Algonquin Power & Utilities Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 30th will be given a $0.065 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 30th. This represents a $0.26 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.08%. Algonquin Power & Utilities’s payout ratio is presently -53.06%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in AQN. Parallel Advisors LLC raised its position in Algonquin Power & Utilities by 76.3% in the fourth quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 4,347 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 1,882 shares during the period. Claro Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities in the second quarter worth $61,000. SG Americas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities in the fourth quarter worth $64,000. SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities in the second quarter worth $66,000. Finally, Seven Mile Advisory purchased a new stake in shares of Algonquin Power & Utilities in the fourth quarter worth $67,000. 62.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Algonquin Power & Utilities Company Profile

Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp. operates in the power and utility industries in the United States, Canada, and other regions. The company operates in two segments, Regulated Services Group and Renewable Energy Group. The company primarily owns and operates a regulated electric, water distribution and wastewater collection, and natural gas utility systems and transmission operations.