Foundry Partners LLC Boosts Position in Artesian Resources Co. (NASDAQ:ARTNA)

Foundry Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Artesian Resources Co. (NASDAQ:ARTNA) by 12.2% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 143,470 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 15,580 shares during the period. Foundry Partners LLC’s holdings in Artesian Resources were worth $5,334,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its holdings in Artesian Resources by 14.9% in the 1st quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 96,493 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $3,581,000 after acquiring an additional 12,523 shares in the last quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System purchased a new stake in Artesian Resources in the 1st quarter worth $161,000. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in Artesian Resources by 2.8% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 545,615 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $20,248,000 after acquiring an additional 14,668 shares in the last quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in Artesian Resources in the 1st quarter worth $41,000. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its holdings in Artesian Resources by 4.2% in the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 9,447 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $351,000 after acquiring an additional 382 shares in the last quarter. 57.37% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Artesian Resources Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ ARTNA opened at $34.06 on Friday. Artesian Resources Co. has a one year low of $32.93 and a one year high of $44.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a current ratio of 1.22. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $35.60 and a 200 day moving average of $36.66. The firm has a market cap of $350.73 million, a PE ratio of 17.47 and a beta of 0.21.

Artesian Resources (NASDAQ:ARTNA) last released its earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The utilities provider reported $0.66 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.61 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $29.14 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $29.00 million. Artesian Resources had a net margin of 18.96% and a return on equity of 8.57%. As a group, research analysts predict that Artesian Resources Co. will post 1.92 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Artesian Resources Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 25th. Investors of record on Friday, November 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.301 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 15th. This is an increase from Artesian Resources’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.54%. Artesian Resources’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 61.54%.

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.