Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG) Stock Rating Lowered by Wells Fargo & Company

Wells Fargo & Company downgraded shares of Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG - Free Report) from an overweight rating to an equal weight rating in a research report released on Tuesday morning, Marketbeat.com reports. Wells Fargo & Company currently has $39.00 price target on the stock, down from their prior price target of $43.00.

A number of other research firms also recently weighed in on WTRG. Jefferies Financial Group downgraded shares of Essential Utilities from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and dropped their price target for the company from $44.00 to $41.00 in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on Essential Utilities from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. Finally, Bank of America reissued a "buy" rating and set a $45.00 target price on shares of Essential Utilities in a report on Friday, September 20th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $43.20.

Essential Utilities Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:WTRG traded down $0.17 on Tuesday, hitting $35.27. The company had a trading volume of 1,434,361 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,088,140. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $38.29 and a 200 day moving average price of $38.86. The company has a current ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 0.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17. The stock has a market cap of $9.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.64, a P/E/G ratio of 3.06 and a beta of 0.86. Essential Utilities has a 1-year low of $33.57 and a 1-year high of $41.78.

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

Essential Utilities Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 3rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 10th will be paid a $0.3255 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 10th. This represents a $1.30 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.69%. Essential Utilities's payout ratio is 65.00%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Friedenthal Financial acquired a new stake in shares of Essential Utilities during the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new stake in shares of Essential Utilities during the third quarter valued at about $26,000. Darwin Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Essential Utilities during the third quarter worth about $28,000. First Horizon Advisors Inc. increased its stake in shares of Essential Utilities by 61.4% in the third quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 773 shares of the company's stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 294 shares during the period. Finally, Truvestments Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Essential Utilities in the third quarter valued at approximately $42,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.78% of the company's stock.

Essential Utilities Company 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.