Toth Financial Advisory Corp Purchases 22,560 Shares of Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG)

Toth Financial Advisory Corp increased its position in Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG - Free Report) by 44.4% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 73,394 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 22,560 shares during the quarter. Toth Financial Advisory Corp's holdings in Essential Utilities were worth $2,831,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of WTRG. Nordea Investment Management AB increased its holdings in shares of Essential Utilities by 17,553.7% in the first quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 3,425,350 shares of the company's stock worth $126,156,000 after buying an additional 3,405,947 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its position in Essential Utilities by 0.4% in 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 purchasing an additional 9,822 shares during the last quarter. Tandem Investment Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Essential Utilities by 0.7% during the second quarter. Tandem Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 2,023,937 shares of the company's stock valued at $75,554,000 after purchasing an additional 13,557 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in shares of Essential Utilities by 18.6% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,500,150 shares of the company's stock worth $56,002,000 after purchasing an additional 234,857 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Epoch Investment Partners Inc. bought a new position in shares of Essential Utilities in the first quarter worth approximately $46,280,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.78% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WTRG has been the subject of several analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Essential Utilities from $42.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Robert W. Baird raised their target price on Essential Utilities from $43.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. Bank of America restated a "buy" rating and set a $45.00 price target on shares of Essential Utilities in a report on Friday, September 20th. Evercore ISI increased their price objective on Essential Utilities from $42.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on Essential Utilities in a research note on Monday, October 7th. They set a "buy" rating and a $44.00 target price on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $44.80.

Essential Utilities Stock Down 0.4 %

Essential Utilities stock traded down $0.17 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $40.38. 712,938 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,533,470. Essential Utilities, Inc. has a one year low of $32.42 and a one year high of $41.78. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $39.05 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $38.35. The company has a current ratio of 0.58, a quick ratio of 0.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14. The company has a market cap of $11.04 billion, a PE ratio of 19.14, a PEG ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 0.84.

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 5th. The company reported $0.28 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.30 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $434.40 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $442.76 million. Essential Utilities had a net margin of 28.74% and a return on equity of 8.16%. The company's revenue for the quarter was down .5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.34 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that Essential Utilities, Inc. will post 1.99 EPS for the current year.

Essential Utilities Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 3rd. Investors of record on Monday, August 12th were given a dividend of $0.3255 per share. This is a boost from Essential Utilities's previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. This represents a $1.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.22%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 12th. Essential Utilities's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 61.61%.

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.