Epoch Investment Partners Inc. Buys 32,548 Shares of Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG)

Epoch Investment Partners Inc. increased its position in Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG - Free Report) by 2.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,196,946 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 32,548 shares during the period. Epoch Investment Partners Inc. owned 0.44% of Essential Utilities worth $43,473,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. VSM Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new position in shares of Essential Utilities in the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. IFP Advisors Inc increased its holdings in shares of Essential Utilities by 75.0% in the 4th quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 1,104 shares of the company's stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 473 shares during the last quarter. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Essential Utilities during the 4th quarter valued at about $45,000. Bessemer Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Essential Utilities by 98.9% in the 4th quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 1,565 shares of the company's stock valued at $56,000 after acquiring an additional 778 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Stonebridge Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in Essential Utilities in the fourth quarter worth about $60,000. 74.78% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have commented on WTRG shares. UBS Group dropped their price objective on shares of Essential Utilities from $45.00 to $42.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. StockNews.com raised shares of Essential Utilities from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Sunday. Evercore ISI increased their price objective on shares of Essential Utilities from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Essential Utilities from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $41.00 target price for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Essential Utilities from $39.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $43.50.

Essential Utilities Trading Down 1.4 %

Shares of Essential Utilities stock traded down $0.57 on Thursday, hitting $40.35. 2,177,461 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,686,974. Essential Utilities, Inc. has a 52 week low of $33.18 and a 52 week high of $41.78. The company has a market cap of $11.12 billion, a PE ratio of 20.18, a PEG ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 0.80. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $38.73 and its 200-day moving average price is $37.94. The company has a current ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 0.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17.

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG - Get Free Report) last issued 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. The business had revenue of $604.38 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $698.77 million. Essential Utilities had a return on equity of 7.89% and a net margin of 27.84%. Equities research analysts predict that Essential Utilities, Inc. will post 1.99 EPS for the current year.

Essential Utilities Dividend Announcement

The firm 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. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 13th. This represents a $1.30 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.23%. Essential Utilities's dividend payout ratio is currently 59.91%.

About Essential Utilities

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.