Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. Invests $504,000 in Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG)

Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. bought a new stake in Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm bought 13,864 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $504,000.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Empower Advisory Group LLC boosted its position in Essential Utilities by 4.7% during the 4th quarter. Empower Advisory Group LLC now owns 1,660,038 shares of the company's stock worth $60,293,000 after buying an additional 74,563 shares during the period. Allworth Financial LP grew its stake in shares of Essential Utilities by 6,305.9% in the fourth quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 187,180 shares of the company's stock worth $6,291,000 after purchasing an additional 184,258 shares during the last quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Essential Utilities by 15.1% in the fourth quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC now owns 10,668 shares of the company's stock valued at $387,000 after purchasing an additional 1,398 shares during the period. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV raised its position in Essential Utilities by 4.8% during the 4th quarter. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV now owns 6,342 shares of the company's stock worth $230,000 after purchasing an additional 289 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vontobel Holding Ltd. lifted its holdings in Essential Utilities by 8.2% during the 4th quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. now owns 104,213 shares of the company's stock worth $3,785,000 after buying an additional 7,929 shares during the period. 74.78% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently commented on WTRG shares. UBS Group decreased their target price on shares of Essential Utilities from $45.00 to $42.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on shares of Essential Utilities from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Essential Utilities from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $41.00 price target for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Essential Utilities from $39.00 to $41.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $43.33.

Essential Utilities Stock Up 2.9 %

Shares of WTRG stock traded up $1.12 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $39.10. The company had a trading volume of 1,113,858 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,530,326. The company has a market cap of $10.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 0.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 0.55 and a quick ratio of 0.39. Essential Utilities, Inc. has a 12 month low of $33.18 and a 12 month high of $41.78. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $35.60 and a 200-day simple moving average of $37.83.

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 26th. The company reported $0.67 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.66 by $0.01. Essential Utilities had a return on equity of 7.89% and a net margin of 27.84%. The business had revenue of $604.38 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $698.77 million. On average, research analysts expect that Essential Utilities, Inc. will post 1.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Essential Utilities Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 2nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 13th will be paid a $0.3255 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 13th. This represents a $1.30 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.33%. Essential Utilities's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 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.