Prudential PLC Buys 13,412 Shares of Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG)

Prudential PLC raised its stake in Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG) by 14.7% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 104,893 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 13,412 shares during the period. Prudential PLC’s holdings in Essential Utilities were worth $3,916,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Tradewinds Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Essential Utilities by 857.5% during the 1st quarter. Tradewinds Capital Management LLC now owns 699 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 626 shares during the last quarter. Tradition Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Essential Utilities by 246.0% during the 4th quarter. Tradition Wealth Management LLC now owns 955 shares of the company’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 679 shares during the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Essential Utilities during the 4th quarter valued at about $36,000. Voisard Asset Management Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of Essential Utilities during the 2nd quarter valued at about $37,000. Finally, Webster Bank N. A. bought a new position in shares of Essential Utilities during the 1st quarter valued at about $41,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.78% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Essential Utilities from $42.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on shares of Essential Utilities from $43.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their target price on shares of Essential Utilities from $42.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Essential Utilities presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $44.40.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CAO Robert A. Rubin sold 2,342 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $37.43, for a total value of $87,661.06. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 53,391 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,998,425.13. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.21% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Essential Utilities Stock Up 2.0 %

Shares of NYSE WTRG opened at $39.74 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.58, a quick ratio of 0.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14. Essential Utilities, Inc. has a 12-month low of $32.07 and a 12-month high of $41.78. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.83, a P/E/G ratio of 3.49 and a beta of 0.85. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $39.54 and its 200-day moving average price is $37.72.

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 5th. The company reported $0.28 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.30 by ($0.02). Essential Utilities had a return on equity of 8.16% and a net margin of 28.74%. The firm had revenue of $434.40 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $442.76 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.34 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down .5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Essential Utilities, Inc. will post 1.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Essential Utilities Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 3rd. Investors of record on Monday, August 12th were given a $0.3255 dividend. This is a positive change from Essential Utilities’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. This represents a $1.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.28%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 12th. Essential Utilities’s dividend payout ratio is 61.61%.

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.