Bank of Nova Scotia grew its holdings in shares of Essential Utilities Inc. (NYSE:WTRG – Free Report) by 65.8% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 50,590 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 20,072 shares during the quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia’s holdings in Essential Utilities were worth $2,037,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.
Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the business. Sei Investments Co. raised its holdings in Essential Utilities by 7.1% during the first quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 130,026 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,236,000 after purchasing an additional 8,606 shares in the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers grew its holdings in Essential Utilities by 3.2% during the first quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 249,090 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,031,000 after acquiring an additional 7,668 shares during the period. Magellan Asset Management Ltd raised its position in Essential Utilities by 31.3% in the first quarter. Magellan Asset Management Ltd now owns 295,754 shares of the company’s stock worth $11,910,000 after acquiring an additional 70,474 shares in the last quarter. Chase Investment Counsel Corp raised its position in Essential Utilities by 4.6% in the first quarter. Chase Investment Counsel Corp now owns 10,523 shares of the company’s stock worth $423,000 after acquiring an additional 462 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Essential Utilities in the first quarter worth about $40,000. Institutional investors own 74.78% of the company’s stock.
Essential Utilities Price Performance
Shares of WTRG opened at $40.66 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a current ratio of 0.95. The firm has a market cap of $11.53 billion, a PE ratio of 20.64 and a beta of 0.65. Essential Utilities Inc. has a twelve month low of $36.10 and a twelve month high of $42.37. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $38.08 and its 200 day moving average price is $38.87.
Essential Utilities Increases Dividend
The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 11th will be issued a dividend of $0.3606 per share. This represents a $1.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.5%. This is a boost from Essential Utilities’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.34. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, August 11th. Essential Utilities’s dividend payout ratio is 69.54%.
Wall Street Analyst Weigh In
A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on WTRG shares. UBS Group increased their price objective on Essential Utilities from $43.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 2nd. Barclays upped their target price on Essential Utilities from $38.00 to $40.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Essential Utilities in a research note on Friday, May 22nd. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Essential Utilities to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, July 4th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $43.80.
Check Out Our Latest Research Report on Essential Utilities
Essential Utilities Company Profile
Essential Utilities, Inc, formerly known as Aqua America, is a publicly traded water and natural gas utility holding company. Through its regulated water and wastewater subsidiaries, the company provides essential water services to residential, commercial and industrial customers. In addition, Essential Utilities delivers natural gas distribution services in Pennsylvania through its Peoples Gas subsidiary, offering integrated utility solutions under a unified corporate framework.
The company traces its roots to the Philadelphia Suburban Water Company, founded in 1886 to serve growing communities outside Philadelphia.
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