UBS Group Issues Pessimistic Forecast for Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG) Stock Price

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG - Get Free Report) had its target price cut by analysts at UBS Group from $45.00 to $42.00 in a report issued on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a "buy" rating on the stock. UBS Group's target price indicates a potential upside of 22.88% from the company's current price.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently issued reports on the company. Wells Fargo & Company cut Essential Utilities from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $43.00 to $39.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Bank of America restated a "buy" rating and set a $45.00 price objective on shares of Essential Utilities in a report on Friday, September 20th. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on shares of Essential Utilities from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group cut shares of Essential Utilities from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $44.00 to $41.00 in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $43.00.

Essential Utilities Trading Up 1.3 %

NYSE:WTRG traded up $0.44 on Tuesday, hitting $34.18. 1,816,322 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,470,490. 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 has a 52 week low of $33.18 and a 52 week high of $41.78. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.09, a P/E/G ratio of 3.06 and a beta of 0.86. The company's 50-day moving average price is $37.85 and its 200 day moving average price is $38.75.

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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 business had revenue of $435.30 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $416.95 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.30 earnings per share. Essential Utilities's revenue was up 5.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Essential Utilities will post 2.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Essential Utilities

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Essential Utilities by 4.4% in the second quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 95,426 shares of the company's stock worth $3,562,000 after purchasing an additional 3,987 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in Essential Utilities by 18.6% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,500,150 shares of the company's stock worth $56,002,000 after buying an additional 234,857 shares in the last quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Essential Utilities by 6.0% during the 2nd quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. now owns 21,902 shares of the company's stock worth $818,000 after buying an additional 1,239 shares during the last quarter. Tower Wealth Partners Inc. increased its position in shares of Essential Utilities by 6.8% in the second quarter. Tower Wealth Partners Inc. now owns 6,718 shares of the company's stock valued at $251,000 after acquiring an additional 426 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Amalgamated Bank raised its holdings in Essential Utilities by 3.2% during the second quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 141,586 shares of the company's stock worth $5,285,000 after acquiring an additional 4,439 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.78% of the company's stock.

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.