Invesco Ltd. Boosts Holdings in Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG)

Invesco Ltd. raised its position in Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG) by 6.8% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 3,690,116 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 236,250 shares during the quarter. Invesco Ltd.’s holdings in Essential Utilities were worth $134,025,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

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

Essential Utilities Price Performance

WTRG opened at $39.27 on Friday. 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 $10.82 billion, a PE ratio of 19.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 0.80. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $37.92 and its 200-day moving average price is $37.83. Essential Utilities, Inc. has a 52-week low of $33.18 and a 52-week high of $41.78.

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 26th. The company reported $0.67 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.66 by $0.01. Essential Utilities had a net margin of 27.84% and a return on equity of 7.89%. The business had revenue of $604.38 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $698.77 million. On average, equities research analysts predict that Essential Utilities, Inc. will post 1.99 EPS for the current year.

Essential Utilities Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 2nd. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 13th will be paid a $0.3255 dividend. This represents a $1.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.32%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 13th. Essential Utilities’s payout ratio is 59.91%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WTRG has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Evercore ISI increased their price target on shares of Essential Utilities from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. UBS Group lowered their price target 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 upped their price objective on Essential Utilities from $39.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 27th. StockNews.com lowered Essential Utilities from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upgraded 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. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Essential Utilities currently 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.