Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG) Upgraded to “Hold” at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a report published on Friday morning.

WTRG has been the subject of a number of other research reports. UBS Group lowered their price objective on Essential Utilities from $45.00 to $42.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Evercore ISI boosted their price target on Essential Utilities from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Essential Utilities from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $41.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted 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 report on Thursday, February 27th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $43.50.

Essential Utilities Price Performance

Shares of WTRG stock opened at $39.62 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $37.56 and its 200 day moving average is $37.84. Essential Utilities 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 current ratio of 0.55 and a quick ratio of 0.39. The company has a market cap of $10.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.81, a PEG ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 0.80.

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 26th. The company reported $0.67 earnings per share (EPS) 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 firm had revenue of $604.38 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $698.77 million. Research analysts predict that Essential Utilities will post 1.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Essential Utilities Announces Dividend

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

Institutional Trading of Essential Utilities

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Synergy Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in Essential Utilities by 92.8% in the fourth quarter. Synergy Asset Management LLC now owns 148,009 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,529,000 after purchasing an additional 71,222 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its stake in shares of Essential Utilities by 16.7% in the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 6,811,851 shares of the company’s stock worth $247,134,000 after buying an additional 972,803 shares during the last quarter. Brighton Jones LLC acquired a new stake in Essential Utilities during the fourth quarter worth about $638,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its position in Essential Utilities by 33.1% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 953,984 shares of the company’s stock valued at $36,795,000 after acquiring an additional 237,096 shares in the last quarter. Finally, RWC Asset Management LLP acquired a new position in Essential Utilities in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $2,119,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.78% of the company’s stock.

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.