Oak Thistle LLC Invests $1.13 Million in Essential Utilities Inc. (NYSE:WTRG)

Oak Thistle LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Essential Utilities Inc. (NYSE:WTRG) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 28,525 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,128,000.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Valley National Advisers Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Essential Utilities during the 1st quarter worth $33,000. American National Bank & Trust acquired a new position in Essential Utilities in the first quarter valued at about $35,000. CX Institutional purchased a new position in Essential Utilities during the first quarter worth about $42,000. Orion Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Essential Utilities during the fourth quarter worth about $41,000. Finally, New Age Alpha Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Essential Utilities during the fourth quarter valued at about $45,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.78% of the company’s stock.

Essential Utilities Stock Down 0.9%

Shares of Essential Utilities stock opened at $37.68 on Thursday. Essential Utilities Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $33.18 and a fifty-two week high of $41.78. The company has a quick ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16. The firm has a market cap of $10.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.89, a P/E/G ratio of 3.50 and a beta of 0.79. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $37.80 and a 200 day moving average price of $37.78.

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 12th. The company reported $1.03 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.80 by $0.23. The company had revenue of $783.63 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $713.80 million. Essential Utilities had a return on equity of 9.81% and a net margin of 27.17%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 28.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.97 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Essential Utilities Inc. will post 1.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have commented on WTRG. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Essential Utilities from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday, July 18th. Robert W. Baird dropped their price objective on Essential Utilities from $47.00 to $46.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Essential Utilities presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target 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.