Nuance Investments LLC Purchases Shares of 238,896 Essential Utilities Inc. $WTRG

Nuance Investments LLC purchased a new stake in Essential Utilities Inc. (NYSE:WTRG) during the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm purchased 238,896 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,152,000. Essential Utilities accounts for about 1.6% of Nuance Investments LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 19th biggest position.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Essential Utilities during the 2nd quarter worth about $1,280,829,000. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Essential Utilities in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $154,176,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new position in Essential Utilities in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $92,467,000. Amundi increased its position in Essential Utilities by 33.4% in the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 6,335,695 shares of the company’s stock worth $243,023,000 after buying an additional 1,586,622 shares during the period. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its holdings in shares of Essential Utilities by 611.4% during the first quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 1,744,679 shares of the company’s stock worth $70,258,000 after buying an additional 1,499,450 shares during the last quarter. 74.78% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Essential Utilities Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:WTRG opened at $39.89 on Tuesday. Essential Utilities Inc. has a 1-year low of $36.10 and a 1-year high of $42.37. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.32 billion, a PE ratio of 20.35 and a beta of 0.64. The business’s 50 day moving average is $38.83 and its 200-day moving average is $38.91. The company has a current ratio of 0.78, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.20.

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 5th. The company reported $0.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.37 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $530.85 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $538.90 million. Essential Utilities had a return on equity of 8.23% and a net margin of 21.60%.Essential Utilities’s quarterly revenue was up 3.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.38 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Essential Utilities Inc. will post 2.21 earnings per share for the current year.

Essential Utilities Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 11th will be issued a $0.3606 dividend. This is a boost from Essential Utilities’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.34. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 11th. This represents a $1.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.6%. Essential Utilities’s payout ratio is presently 73.47%.

Insider Transactions at Essential Utilities

In other news, insider Colleen Arnold sold 2,855 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, August 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $39.55, for a total value of $112,915.25. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 17,347 shares in the company, valued at approximately $686,073.85. This represents a 14.13% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.36% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Essential Utilities in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Essential Utilities to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, July 4th. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Essential Utilities from $38.00 to $40.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. Finally, UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Essential Utilities from $43.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 2nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $43.00.

About Essential Utilities

Essential Utilities, Inc, formerly known as Aqua America, is a publicly traded water and natural gas utility holding company. Through its regulated water and wastewater subsidiaries, the company provides essential water services to residential, commercial and industrial customers. In addition, Essential Utilities delivers natural gas distribution services in Pennsylvania through its Peoples Gas subsidiary, offering integrated utility solutions under a unified corporate framework.

The company traces its roots to the Philadelphia Suburban Water Company, founded in 1886 to serve growing communities outside Philadelphia.