Resolution Capital Ltd Takes Position in Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG)

Resolution Capital Ltd bought a new position in shares of Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG) in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund bought 51,557 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,873,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. VSM Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Essential Utilities during the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. IFP Advisors Inc grew its stake 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 in the last quarter. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Essential Utilities during the 4th quarter valued at $45,000. Bessemer Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Essential Utilities by 98.9% during the 4th quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 1,565 shares of the company’s stock valued at $56,000 after buying an additional 778 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Stonebridge Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Essential Utilities in the 4th quarter worth approximately $60,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.78% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WTRG has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. StockNews.com raised Essential Utilities from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, April 20th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Essential Utilities from $39.00 to $41.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Robert W. Baird dropped their target price on shares of Essential Utilities from $47.00 to $46.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday. Jefferies Financial Group raised Essential Utilities from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $41.00 price target for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, Evercore ISI raised their target price on shares of Essential Utilities from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Essential Utilities presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $43.50.

Essential Utilities Stock Performance

Shares of WTRG stock opened at $36.93 on Thursday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $39.53 and its 200-day moving average price is $38.00. The stock has a market cap of $10.18 billion, a PE ratio of 18.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a current ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 0.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17. Essential Utilities, Inc. has a 12 month low of $33.18 and a 12 month high of $41.78.

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 12th. The company reported $1.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.80 by $0.23. The company had revenue of $783.63 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $713.80 million. Essential Utilities had a net margin of 27.84% and a return on equity of 7.89%. Essential Utilities’s revenue was up 28.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.97 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Essential Utilities, Inc. will post 1.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Essential Utilities Dividend Announcement

The business 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 13th. This represents a $1.30 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.53%. Essential Utilities’s payout ratio is currently 58.30%.

Essential Utilities Profile

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.