Essential Utilities’ (WTRG) Buy Rating Reaffirmed at Bank of America

Bank of America reiterated their buy rating on shares of Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG) in a report published on Friday morning, MarketBeat.com reports. They currently have a $45.00 price objective on the stock.

Other equities research analysts have also issued reports about the stock. Evercore ISI upped their price target on shares of Essential Utilities from $42.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on Essential Utilities from $43.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Essential Utilities from $42.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $44.50.

Essential Utilities Trading Down 0.8 %

Essential Utilities stock opened at $38.00 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $39.68 and a 200 day moving average price of $37.95. The company has a market capitalization of $10.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.55 and a beta of 0.85. Essential Utilities has a 52 week low of $32.07 and a 52 week high of $41.78. The company has a quick ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 0.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14.

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 5th. The company reported $0.28 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.30 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $434.40 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $442.76 million. Essential Utilities had a net margin of 28.74% and a return on equity of 8.16%. The business’s revenue was down .5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.34 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Essential Utilities will post 1.94 EPS for the current year.

Essential Utilities Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 3rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 12th were given a dividend of $0.3255 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 12th. 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 dividend yield of 3.43%. Essential Utilities’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 61.61%.

Insider Activity at Essential Utilities

In other Essential Utilities news, CAO Robert A. Rubin sold 2,342 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $37.43, for a total transaction of $87,661.06. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 53,391 shares in the company, valued at $1,998,425.13. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.21% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Essential Utilities

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in shares of Essential Utilities by 3.6% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,281,232 shares of the company’s stock valued at $47,857,000 after acquiring an additional 44,477 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Essential Utilities in the 4th quarter valued at $97,288,000. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. boosted its stake in Essential Utilities by 3.2% during the 4th quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 196,873 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,353,000 after purchasing an additional 6,105 shares during the last quarter. UBS Group AG grew its holdings in shares of Essential Utilities by 271.9% during the fourth quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 1,225,849 shares of the company’s stock worth $45,785,000 after buying an additional 896,223 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Corient Private Wealth LLC raised its position in shares of Essential Utilities by 40.9% in the fourth quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 52,013 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,943,000 after buying an additional 15,110 shares during the last quarter. 74.78% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.