Analysts Set Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG) Price Target at $44.00

Shares of Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG) have earned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the five ratings firms that are covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation and four have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price objective among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $44.00.

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on WTRG shares. Robert W. Baird increased 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, November 6th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on Essential Utilities from $45.00 to $43.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Bank of America reissued a “buy” rating and set a $45.00 price objective on shares of Essential Utilities in a report on Friday, September 20th. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on Essential Utilities from $42.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group cut Essential Utilities from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and dropped their price objective for the stock from $44.00 to $41.00 in a report on Thursday, November 7th.

Essential Utilities Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE WTRG opened at $38.53 on Friday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $39.07 and its two-hundred day moving average is $38.78. The company has a market cap of $10.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.26, a P/E/G ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a quick ratio of 0.39, a current ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17. Essential Utilities has a 12 month low of $33.57 and a 12 month high of $41.78.

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 4th. The company reported $0.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.24 by $0.01. Essential Utilities had a return on equity of 7.89% and a net margin of 27.84%. The business had revenue of $435.30 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $416.95 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.30 earnings per share. Essential Utilities’s quarterly revenue was up 5.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts expect that Essential Utilities will post 2.01 EPS for the current year.

Essential Utilities Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 2nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 12th will be paid a dividend of $0.3255 per share. This represents a $1.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.38%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 12th. Essential Utilities’s dividend payout ratio is presently 65.00%.

Institutional Trading of Essential Utilities

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of WTRG. Friedenthal Financial bought a new position in Essential Utilities during the 3rd quarter worth $25,000. Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new position in shares of Essential Utilities in the third quarter worth approximately $26,000. Darwin Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Essential Utilities in the third quarter valued at approximately $28,000. First Horizon Advisors Inc. increased its position in Essential Utilities by 61.4% during the 3rd quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 773 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 294 shares during the period. Finally, Voisard Asset Management Group Inc. bought a new position in Essential Utilities during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $37,000. Institutional investors own 74.78% of the company’s stock.

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.