What is Zacks Research's Forecast for WTRG Q1 Earnings?

Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG - Free Report) - Equities researchers at Zacks Research lowered their Q1 2025 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for shares of Essential Utilities in a research report issued on Wednesday, April 23rd. Zacks Research analyst R. Department now anticipates that the company will earn $0.79 per share for the quarter, down from their prior forecast of $0.80. The consensus estimate for Essential Utilities' current full-year earnings is $1.99 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Essential Utilities' Q4 2025 earnings at $0.67 EPS, Q2 2026 earnings at $0.37 EPS, Q4 2026 earnings at $0.72 EPS, FY2026 earnings at $2.23 EPS, Q1 2027 earnings at $0.70 EPS and FY2027 earnings at $2.38 EPS.

A number of other equities research analysts have also issued reports on WTRG. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Essential Utilities from $39.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, February 27th. StockNews.com raised shares of Essential Utilities from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Sunday, April 20th. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Essential Utilities from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $41.00 price objective for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. UBS Group dropped their price objective 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. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their price objective on shares of Essential Utilities from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $43.50.

Essential Utilities Price Performance

NYSE WTRG traded up $0.15 on Friday, hitting $40.27. The company had a trading volume of 1,335,932 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,462,381. Essential Utilities has a 12-month low of $33.18 and a 12-month high of $41.78. The company has a market capitalization of $11.10 billion, a PE ratio of 20.14, a PEG ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 0.80. The company's fifty day moving average price is $38.92 and its 200-day moving average price is $37.96. 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 results on Wednesday, February 26th. The company reported $0.67 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.66 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $604.38 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $698.77 million. Essential Utilities had a return on equity of 7.89% and a net margin of 27.84%.

Essential Utilities Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 2nd. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 13th will be given a $0.3255 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 13th. This represents a $1.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.23%. Essential Utilities's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 59.91%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Essential Utilities

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. D.A. Davidson & CO. raised its holdings in shares of Essential Utilities by 8.5% in the first quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 15,034 shares of the company's stock valued at $594,000 after buying an additional 1,179 shares during the last quarter. Tandem Investment Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Essential Utilities by 0.9% in the first quarter. Tandem Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 2,045,060 shares of the company's stock valued at $80,841,000 after buying an additional 18,353 shares during the last quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas purchased a new stake in shares of Essential Utilities in the first quarter valued at about $1,507,000. Ledgewood Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Essential Utilities in the first quarter valued at about $206,000. Finally, Valley National Advisers Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Essential Utilities in the first quarter valued at about $33,000. 74.78% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.