FIL Ltd Sells 72,010 Shares of Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG)

FIL Ltd reduced its stake in shares of Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG) by 3.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,888,737 shares of the company’s stock after selling 72,010 shares during the quarter. FIL Ltd owned approximately 0.69% of Essential Utilities worth $68,599,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. VSM Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in Essential Utilities in the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. IFP Advisors Inc increased its holdings in Essential Utilities by 75.0% in the 4th quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 1,104 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 473 shares during the period. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Essential Utilities in the 4th quarter worth approximately $45,000. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in Essential Utilities in the 4th quarter worth approximately $60,000. Finally, Crews Bank & Trust acquired a new position in Essential Utilities in the 4th quarter worth approximately $90,000. 74.78% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Essential Utilities Stock Performance

Shares of Essential Utilities stock opened at $37.74 on Thursday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $37.80 and a 200 day moving average of $37.82. Essential Utilities, Inc. has a 12 month low of $33.18 and a 12 month high of $41.78. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 0.80. 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) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The company reported $0.67 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.66 by $0.01. Essential Utilities had a return on equity of 7.89% and a net margin of 27.84%. The company had revenue of $604.38 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $698.77 million. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Essential Utilities, Inc. will post 1.99 earnings per share for the current year.

Essential Utilities Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 2nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 13th will be paid a $0.3255 dividend. This represents a $1.30 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.45%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 13th. Essential Utilities’s payout ratio is presently 59.91%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have commented on WTRG shares. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on Essential Utilities from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Essential Utilities from $39.00 to $41.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Jefferies Financial Group raised Essential Utilities from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $41.00 target price for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. UBS Group cut their target price on Essential Utilities from $45.00 to $42.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, StockNews.com raised Essential Utilities from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, April 4th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $43.50.

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.