Haverford Trust Co Raises Stake in Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG)

Haverford Trust Co raised its holdings in shares of Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG) by 6.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 27,186 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,613 shares during the quarter. Haverford Trust Co’s holdings in Essential Utilities were worth $987,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WTRG. Glenmede Trust Co. NA boosted its stake in Essential Utilities by 1.6% in the third quarter. Glenmede Trust Co. NA now owns 51,881 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,001,000 after acquiring an additional 803 shares in the last quarter. Synergy Asset Management LLC raised its position in Essential Utilities by 92.8% in the fourth quarter. Synergy Asset Management LLC now owns 148,009 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,529,000 after acquiring an additional 71,222 shares in the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its position in shares of Essential Utilities by 16.7% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 6,811,851 shares of the company’s stock worth $247,134,000 after purchasing an additional 972,803 shares in the last quarter. Brighton Jones LLC purchased a new stake in Essential Utilities during the fourth quarter worth about $638,000. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Essential Utilities by 8.7% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,871,932 shares of the company’s stock worth $72,200,000 after acquiring an additional 149,162 shares in the last quarter. 74.78% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Essential Utilities Stock Down 1.0 %

WTRG stock opened at $38.12 on Tuesday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $36.69 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $37.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 0.39 and a current ratio of 0.55. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.06, a PEG ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 0.79. Essential Utilities, Inc. has a one year low of $33.18 and a one year high of $41.78.

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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 business had revenue of $604.38 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $698.77 million. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Essential Utilities, Inc. will post 1.99 EPS for the current year.

Essential Utilities Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 2nd. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 13th will be given a $0.3255 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 13th. This represents a $1.30 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.42%. Essential Utilities’s dividend payout ratio is presently 59.91%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently issued reports on WTRG. Evercore ISI lifted their price target on Essential Utilities from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded 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. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Essential Utilities from $39.00 to $41.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, UBS Group cut their price objective on Essential Utilities from $45.00 to $42.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Essential Utilities currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average 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.