Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG) Shares Purchased by Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc.

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. increased its holdings in Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG - Free Report) by 6.1% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 510,053 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 29,461 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. owned approximately 0.19% of Essential Utilities worth $19,673,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of WTRG. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its position in Essential Utilities by 0.4% during the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 2,754,099 shares of the company's stock valued at $102,811,000 after acquiring an additional 9,822 shares during the last quarter. Tandem Investment Advisors Inc. increased its position in Essential Utilities by 0.5% during the third quarter. Tandem Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 2,034,497 shares of the company's stock valued at $78,471,000 after acquiring an additional 10,560 shares during the last quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp increased its position in Essential Utilities by 117.3% during the third quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp now owns 1,962,692 shares of the company's stock valued at $75,701,000 after acquiring an additional 1,059,320 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in Essential Utilities by 18.6% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,500,150 shares of the company's stock valued at $56,002,000 after acquiring an additional 234,857 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Pathway Financial Advisers LLC increased its position in Essential Utilities by 4,309.4% during the third quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 1,255,483 shares of the company's stock valued at $48,424,000 after acquiring an additional 1,227,010 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 74.78% of the company's stock.

Essential Utilities Stock Up 0.6 %

NYSE:WTRG traded up $0.23 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $38.83. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,156,849 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,527,384. Essential Utilities, Inc. has a 1 year low of $33.57 and a 1 year high of $41.78. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $39.03 and a 200-day moving average of $38.82. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.66 billion, a PE ratio of 19.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.05 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a quick ratio of 0.39, a current ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17.

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG - Get Free Report) last announced its 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 business had revenue of $435.30 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $416.95 million. Essential Utilities had a net margin of 27.84% and a return on equity of 7.89%. The firm's revenue was up 5.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.30 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Essential Utilities, Inc. will post 2.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Essential Utilities Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 2nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 12th will be issued a dividend of $0.3255 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 12th. This represents a $1.30 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.35%. Essential Utilities's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 65.00%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have weighed in on WTRG shares. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Essential Utilities from $45.00 to $43.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. 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 research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Evercore ISI boosted their target price on shares of Essential Utilities from $42.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered shares of Essential Utilities from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and lowered their target price for the company from $44.00 to $41.00 in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, Bank of America reissued a "buy" rating and set a $45.00 target price on shares of Essential Utilities in a research note on Friday, September 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Essential Utilities presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $44.00.

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.