Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG) Shares Bought by Swedbank AB

Swedbank AB lifted its position in Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG - Free Report) by 4.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 295,451 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 13,081 shares during the quarter. Swedbank AB owned approximately 0.11% of Essential Utilities worth $10,731,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. grew its position in shares of Essential Utilities by 6.7% during the fourth quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 56,560 shares of the company's stock worth $2,054,000 after acquiring an additional 3,569 shares during the last quarter. Verus Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Essential Utilities during the fourth quarter worth about $361,000. KBC Group NV grew its holdings in shares of Essential Utilities by 24.0% during the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 22,255 shares of the company's stock worth $809,000 after buying an additional 4,307 shares during the last quarter. Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Essential Utilities in the 4th quarter valued at about $422,000. Finally, Toth Financial Advisory Corp raised its stake in Essential Utilities by 18.2% during the 4th quarter. Toth Financial Advisory Corp now owns 86,756 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,151,000 after acquiring an additional 13,362 shares during the last quarter. 74.78% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Essential Utilities Price Performance

WTRG traded down $0.65 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $35.36. 579,291 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,493,382. The business's 50-day moving average price is $36.64 and its 200 day moving average price is $38.39. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.71 billion, a PE ratio of 17.69, a P/E/G ratio of 2.54 and a beta of 0.87. Essential Utilities, Inc. has a 1-year low of $33.18 and a 1-year high of $41.78. 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 posted its earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The company reported $0.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.24 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $435.30 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $416.95 million. Essential Utilities had a return on equity of 7.89% and a net margin of 27.84%. Essential Utilities's revenue was up 5.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.30 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Essential Utilities, Inc. will post 1.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Essential Utilities Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 3rd. Investors of record on Monday, February 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.3255 per share. This represents a $1.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.68%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 10th. Essential Utilities's payout ratio is currently 65.00%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently commented on WTRG. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on Essential Utilities from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Essential Utilities from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $41.00 price target for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Wells Fargo & Company cut Essential Utilities from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $43.00 to $39.00 in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, UBS Group cut their price target on shares of Essential Utilities from $45.00 to $42.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $43.00.

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.