Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG) Updates FY 2025 Earnings Guidance

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG) updated its FY 2025 earnings guidance on Wednesday. The company provided earnings per share (EPS) guidance of 2.070-2.110 for the period, compared to the consensus estimate of 2.120. The company issued revenue guidance of -.

Essential Utilities Stock Up 0.2 %

NYSE WTRG traded up $0.07 on Friday, hitting $37.64. The stock had a trading volume of 605,453 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,480,319. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $35.57 and its 200 day moving average price is $37.86. The stock has a market cap of $10.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 0.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 0.55 and a quick ratio of 0.39. Essential Utilities has a 52-week low of $33.18 and a 52-week high of $41.78.

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The company reported $0.67 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.66 by $0.01. Essential Utilities had a return on equity of 7.89% and a net margin of 27.84%. The firm had revenue of $604.38 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $698.77 million. Equities research analysts anticipate that Essential Utilities will post 1.99 earnings per share for the current year.

Essential Utilities Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 2nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 13th will be issued a $0.3255 dividend. This represents a $1.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.46%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 13th. Essential Utilities’s dividend payout ratio is presently 65.00%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WTRG has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on Essential Utilities from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Essential Utilities from $39.00 to $41.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Essential Utilities from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $41.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, UBS Group reduced their price objective on shares of Essential Utilities from $45.00 to $42.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $43.33.

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.