Captrust Financial Advisors boosted its stake in shares of Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG – Free Report) by 43.3% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 17,981 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 5,432 shares during the period. Captrust Financial Advisors’ holdings in Essential Utilities were worth $694,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.
Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Friedenthal Financial acquired a new position in Essential Utilities during the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Brooklyn Investment Group bought a new position in shares of Essential Utilities in the 3rd quarter valued at $26,000. Darwin Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Essential Utilities during the 3rd quarter worth $28,000. First Horizon Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of Essential Utilities by 61.4% during the 3rd quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 773 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 294 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Truvestments Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Essential Utilities in the third quarter valued at about $42,000. 74.78% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
Essential Utilities Stock Up 0.6 %
NYSE:WTRG opened at $39.08 on Wednesday. Essential Utilities, Inc. has a one year low of $33.57 and a one year high of $41.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 0.55 and a quick ratio of 0.39. The company has a market cap of $10.73 billion, a PE ratio of 19.54, a P/E/G ratio of 3.06 and a beta of 0.85. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $39.31 and its 200 day simple moving average is $38.90.
Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG – Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The company reported $0.25 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.24 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $435.30 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $416.95 million. Essential Utilities had a net margin of 27.84% and a return on equity of 7.89%. Essential Utilities’s revenue was up 5.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.30 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that Essential Utilities, Inc. will post 2.02 earnings per share for the current year.
Essential Utilities Announces Dividend
The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 2nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 12th were given a dividend of $0.3255 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, November 12th. This represents a $1.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.33%. Essential Utilities’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 65.00%.
Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades
Several research analysts have commented on WTRG shares. Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on Essential Utilities from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Jefferies Financial Group cut shares of Essential Utilities from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $44.00 to $41.00 in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Bank of America restated a “buy” rating and issued a $45.00 target price on shares of Essential Utilities in a research report on Friday, September 20th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Essential Utilities from $45.00 to $43.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $44.00.
View Our Latest Stock Analysis on Essential Utilities
About Essential Utilities
(Free Report)
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.
Featured Articles
Want to see what other hedge funds are holding WTRG? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG – Free Report).
Receive News & Ratings for Essential Utilities Daily – Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts’ ratings for Essential Utilities and related companies with MarketBeat.com’s FREE daily email newsletter.
