Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG) Shares Acquired by Vestcor Inc

Vestcor Inc increased its holdings in shares of Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG) by 6.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 21,571 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,332 shares during the quarter. Vestcor Inc’s holdings in Essential Utilities were worth $783,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its position in Essential Utilities by 16.7% during the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 6,811,851 shares of the company’s stock worth $247,134,000 after acquiring an additional 972,803 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Essential Utilities by 2.0% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,305,976 shares of the company’s stock worth $165,701,000 after purchasing an additional 82,456 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its stake in Essential Utilities by 6.9% during the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 2,731,011 shares of the company’s stock worth $99,190,000 after purchasing an additional 175,707 shares during the period. Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co. raised its stake in Essential Utilities by 4.2% during the third quarter. Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co. now owns 2,531,297 shares of the company’s stock worth $97,632,000 after purchasing an additional 100,990 shares during the period. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its stake in Essential Utilities by 7.3% during the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 2,154,215 shares of the company’s stock worth $83,088,000 after purchasing an additional 145,767 shares during the period. 74.78% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have commented on WTRG. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on shares of Essential Utilities from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. UBS Group reduced their target price on shares of Essential Utilities from $45.00 to $42.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Essential Utilities from $39.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Essential Utilities from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $41.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $43.50.

Essential Utilities Price Performance

Essential Utilities stock opened at $39.54 on Monday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $36.18 and its 200-day simple moving average is $37.82. The company has a market capitalization of $10.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 0.79. Essential Utilities, Inc. has a 1 year low of $33.18 and a 1 year high of $41.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 0.39 and a current ratio of 0.55.

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The company reported $0.67 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.66 by $0.01. Essential Utilities had a net margin of 27.84% and a return on equity of 7.89%. The firm had revenue of $604.38 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $698.77 million. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Essential Utilities, Inc. will post 1.99 earnings per share for the current year.

Essential Utilities Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 2nd. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 13th will be paid a dividend of $0.3255 per share. This represents a $1.30 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.29%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 13th. Essential Utilities’s payout ratio is currently 59.91%.

Essential Utilities Profile

Essential Utilities, Inc, through its subsidiaries, operates regulated utilities that provide water, wastewater, or natural gas services in the United States. The company operates through Regulated Water and Regulated Natural Gas segments. It offers water services through operating and maintenance contract with municipal authorities and other parties.