Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG) Receives $43.00 Consensus PT from Brokerages

Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG) has earned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the six research firms that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation and five have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price objective among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $43.00.

Several research analysts have weighed in on the company. UBS Group cut their price objective on Essential Utilities from $45.00 to $42.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered shares of Essential Utilities from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and reduced their price target for the company from $43.00 to $39.00 in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on shares of Essential Utilities from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Essential Utilities from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $41.00 target price for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th.

Essential Utilities Price Performance

Essential Utilities stock opened at $35.21 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $9.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.60, a P/E/G ratio of 2.53 and a beta of 0.86. The company has a quick ratio of 0.39, a current ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $35.92 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $38.13. Essential Utilities has a 52 week low of $33.18 and a 52 week high of $41.78.

Essential Utilities Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared 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 3.70%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 10th. Essential Utilities’s payout ratio is currently 65.00%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Essential Utilities

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of WTRG. Friedenthal Financial bought a new stake in shares of Essential Utilities during the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. Brooklyn Investment Group bought a new stake in shares of Essential Utilities during the third quarter valued at about $26,000. VSM Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Essential Utilities in the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Darwin Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Essential Utilities in the third quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Finally, First Horizon Advisors Inc. grew its stake in Essential Utilities by 61.4% during the third quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 773 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 294 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 74.78% of the company’s stock.

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.