Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG) Receives Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Shares of Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG) have been assigned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the six brokerages that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation and five have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $43.50.

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Essential Utilities from $39.00 to $41.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. UBS Group reduced their price objective on Essential Utilities from $45.00 to $42.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Evercore ISI raised their target price on Essential Utilities from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised Essential Utilities from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $41.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th.

Institutional Trading of Essential Utilities

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in WTRG. Blair William & Co. IL grew its holdings in Essential Utilities by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 24,652 shares of the company’s stock valued at $895,000 after buying an additional 285 shares in the last quarter. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV boosted its position in shares of Essential Utilities by 4.8% in the fourth quarter. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV now owns 6,342 shares of the company’s stock valued at $230,000 after acquiring an additional 289 shares during the period. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System grew its stake in Essential Utilities by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 70,100 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,546,000 after acquiring an additional 300 shares in the last quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC increased its holdings in Essential Utilities by 1.7% during the 4th quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC now owns 19,527 shares of the company’s stock worth $709,000 after acquiring an additional 317 shares during the period. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in Essential Utilities by 7.2% during the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 4,946 shares of the company’s stock worth $180,000 after acquiring an additional 332 shares during the period. 74.78% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Essential Utilities Stock Up 1.7 %

WTRG stock opened at $39.30 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $10.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.65, a P/E/G ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 0.79. The company has a current ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 0.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $37.00 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $37.81. Essential Utilities has a 1-year low of $33.18 and a 1-year high of $41.78.

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

Essential Utilities Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 2nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 13th will be issued a $0.3255 dividend. This represents a $1.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.31%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 13th. Essential Utilities’s payout ratio is currently 59.91%.

Essential Utilities Company 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.