Holocene Advisors LP Boosts Stock Holdings in Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG)

Holocene Advisors LP grew its position in shares of Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG - Free Report) by 24.6% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 193,091 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 38,138 shares during the quarter. Holocene Advisors LP owned 0.07% of Essential Utilities worth $7,448,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Friedenthal Financial bought a new position in Essential Utilities during the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Brooklyn Investment Group bought a new position in Essential Utilities during the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Darwin Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Essential Utilities during the third quarter valued at approximately $28,000. First Horizon Advisors Inc. lifted its position in Essential Utilities by 61.4% during the third quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 773 shares of the company's stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 294 shares during the period. Finally, Voisard Asset Management Group Inc. bought a new position in Essential Utilities during the second quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.78% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on WTRG shares. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on shares of Essential Utilities from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. Evercore ISI increased their price target on shares of Essential Utilities from $42.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target 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. Jefferies Financial Group downgraded shares of Essential Utilities from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $44.00 to $41.00 in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, Bank of America reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $45.00 price target on shares of Essential Utilities in a research report 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 MarketBeat.com, Essential Utilities currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $44.00.

Essential Utilities Price Performance

Shares of WTRG stock traded down $0.51 on Wednesday, hitting $39.16. 1,171,487 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,522,500. The firm has a market cap of $10.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.58, a PEG ratio of 3.18 and a beta of 0.85. Essential Utilities, Inc. has a 52 week low of $33.57 and a 52 week high of $41.78. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $39.27 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $38.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 0.55 and a quick ratio of 0.39.

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 4th. The company reported $0.25 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.24 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $435.30 million for 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 company's revenue was up 5.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.30 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Essential Utilities, Inc. will post 2.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Essential Utilities Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 2nd. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 12th were paid a dividend of $0.3255 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, November 12th. This represents a $1.30 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.32%. Essential Utilities's payout ratio is 65.00%.

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.