Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG) Receives Consensus Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from Analysts

Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG - Get Free Report) has been assigned a consensus recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the six analysts that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation and five have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 1-year price target among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $43.50.

WTRG has been the topic of a number of research reports. UBS Group lowered their price target on Essential Utilities from $45.00 to $42.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Evercore ISI raised their price target on Essential Utilities from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Essential Utilities from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $41.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Essential Utilities from $39.00 to $41.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 27th.

Essential Utilities Price Performance

Shares of WTRG traded down $0.18 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $39.37. The company's stock had a trading volume of 526,703 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,451,083. 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 has a 1-year low of $33.18 and a 1-year high of $41.78. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.69, a P/E/G ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 0.79. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $37.19 and a 200 day simple moving average of $37.81.

Remove Ads

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The company reported $0.67 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.66 by $0.01. Essential Utilities had a return on equity of 7.89% and a net margin of 27.84%. The company had revenue of $604.38 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $698.77 million. Analysts predict that Essential Utilities will post 1.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Essential Utilities Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 2nd. Investors 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 3.31%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 13th. Essential Utilities's dividend payout ratio is presently 59.91%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Cerity Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Essential Utilities by 17.3% during the third quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 36,201 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,396,000 after buying an additional 5,347 shares during the period. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. raised its holdings in Essential Utilities by 4.8% in the 3rd quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 23,923 shares of the company's stock valued at $923,000 after acquiring an additional 1,102 shares during the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Essential Utilities during the 3rd quarter worth $212,000. D.A. Davidson & CO. lifted its stake in shares of Essential Utilities by 2.8% during the 3rd quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 15,713 shares of the company's stock worth $606,000 after purchasing an additional 429 shares during the period. Finally, Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new stake in shares of Essential Utilities during the third quarter worth $26,000. 74.78% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.