Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG) Receives $43.00 Average Target Price from Brokerages

Shares of Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG) have been given a consensus rating of “Buy” by the four brokerages that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy recommendation. The average 12-month target price among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $43.00.

Separately, Evercore ISI dropped their price objective on Essential Utilities from $51.00 to $42.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 4th.

Essential Utilities Stock Up 1.0 %

Shares of Essential Utilities stock opened at $36.46 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $9.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.60, a PEG ratio of 3.15 and a beta of 0.82. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $35.75 and a two-hundred day moving average of $35.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a current ratio of 0.62. Essential Utilities has a one year low of $32.07 and a one year high of $43.74.

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, February 23rd. The company reported $0.50 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.49 by $0.01. Essential Utilities had a net margin of 24.26% and a return on equity of 8.68%. The firm had revenue of $479.40 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $708.50 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.44 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 32.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts forecast that Essential Utilities will post 2 earnings per share for the current year.

Essential Utilities Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 10th will be issued a $0.3071 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 9th. This is a boost from Essential Utilities’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. This represents a $1.23 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.37%. Essential Utilities’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 66.13%.

Insider Transactions at Essential Utilities

In related news, CAO Robert A. Rubin sold 5,565 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $37.21, for a total value of $207,073.65. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 57,756 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,149,100.76. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.21% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Essential Utilities

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WTRG. LPL Financial LLC increased its stake in shares of Essential Utilities by 14.2% during the 3rd quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 235,841 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,096,000 after purchasing an additional 29,372 shares in the last quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky grew its holdings in shares of Essential Utilities by 94.0% during the third quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky now owns 81,799 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,808,000 after buying an additional 39,643 shares in the last quarter. Mariner LLC raised its position in shares of Essential Utilities by 9.9% in the third quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 34,360 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,180,000 after buying an additional 3,104 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Essential Utilities during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $3,583,000. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in Essential Utilities by 0.4% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 27,168,585 shares of the company’s stock worth $932,698,000 after acquiring an additional 99,560 shares during the last quarter. 74.78% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.