Empower Advisory Group LLC Acquires 84,596 Shares of Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG)

Empower Advisory Group LLC grew its position in Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG - Free Report) by 5.6% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,585,475 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 84,596 shares during the quarter. Empower Advisory Group LLC owned approximately 0.58% of Essential Utilities worth $61,152,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in WTRG. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Essential Utilities by 24.8% in the first quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 19,334 shares of the company's stock worth $782,000 after buying an additional 3,843 shares during the period. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. increased its holdings in Essential Utilities by 13.9% in the 1st quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 7,297 shares of the company's stock valued at $270,000 after buying an additional 889 shares during the period. Forsta AP Fonden lifted its position in Essential Utilities by 22.1% during the 1st quarter. Forsta AP Fonden now owns 62,400 shares of the company's stock worth $2,312,000 after buying an additional 11,300 shares in the last quarter. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. increased its stake in Essential Utilities by 5.5% during the 1st quarter. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. now owns 6,506 shares of the company's stock worth $241,000 after purchasing an additional 339 shares in the last quarter. Finally, QRG Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Essential Utilities by 13.3% in the 1st quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 12,016 shares of the company's stock valued at $445,000 after buying an additional 1,407 shares during the last quarter. 74.78% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Essential Utilities Trading Down 1.1 %

Shares of Essential Utilities stock traded down $0.42 on Wednesday, reaching $38.63. 541,256 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,529,986. The company has a market capitalization of $10.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 0.84. Essential Utilities, Inc. has a 52 week low of $33.57 and a 52 week high of $41.78. The firm's 50-day moving average is $39.07 and its two-hundred day moving average is $38.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 0.39 and a current ratio of 0.55.

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The company reported $0.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.24 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $435.30 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $416.95 million. Essential Utilities had a return on equity of 7.89% and a net margin of 27.84%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 5.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.30 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Essential Utilities, Inc. will post 2.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Essential Utilities Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 2nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 12th will be paid a dividend of $0.3255 per share. This represents a $1.30 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.37%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 12th. Essential Utilities's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 65.00%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on Essential Utilities from $45.00 to $43.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Evercore ISI upped their target price on Essential Utilities from $42.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on 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 cut Essential Utilities from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and reduced their target price for the company from $44.00 to $41.00 in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, Bank of America reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $45.00 target price on shares of Essential Utilities in a report on Friday, September 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Essential Utilities has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $44.00.

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.