Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG) Shares Bought by Maryland State Retirement & Pension System

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System boosted its stake in shares of Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG) by 4.3% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 229,622 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 9,507 shares during the period. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System’s holdings in Essential Utilities were worth $8,576,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WTRG. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. grew its holdings in shares of Essential Utilities by 53.6% during the third quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 45,331 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,556,000 after buying an additional 15,811 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James & Associates grew its holdings in shares of Essential Utilities by 35.8% during the third quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 157,440 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,405,000 after buying an additional 41,494 shares in the last quarter. Forsta AP Fonden grew its holdings in shares of Essential Utilities by 25.2% during the third quarter. Forsta AP Fonden now owns 71,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,437,000 after buying an additional 14,300 shares in the last quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System grew its holdings in shares of Essential Utilities by 6.2% during the third quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System now owns 317,086 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,886,000 after buying an additional 18,382 shares in the last quarter. Finally, IFM Investors Pty Ltd grew its holdings in shares of Essential Utilities by 2.6% during the third quarter. IFM Investors Pty Ltd now owns 92,851 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,188,000 after buying an additional 2,369 shares in the last quarter. 74.78% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on WTRG. Evercore ISI dropped their target price on shares of Essential Utilities from $51.00 to $42.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 4th. Robert W. Baird dropped their price objective on shares of Essential Utilities from $44.00 to $43.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $43.00.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Essential Utilities news, CAO Robert A. Rubin sold 2,023 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.56, for a total transaction of $73,960.88. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 13,358 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $488,368.48. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In other Essential Utilities news, CAO Robert A. Rubin sold 5,565 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $37.21, for a total transaction of $207,073.65. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 57,756 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,149,100.76. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CAO Robert A. Rubin sold 2,023 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.56, for a total transaction of $73,960.88. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 13,358 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $488,368.48. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.21% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Essential Utilities Trading Up 1.4 %

Shares of WTRG traded up $0.52 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $38.30. The stock had a trading volume of 1,119,370 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,793,751. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 0.62 and a quick ratio of 0.48. Essential Utilities, Inc. has a 52-week low of $32.07 and a 52-week high of $43.74. The business’s fifty day moving average is $35.94 and its 200 day moving average is $35.93. The firm has a market cap of $10.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.15, a P/E/G ratio of 3.29 and a beta of 0.80.

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, February 23rd. The company reported $0.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.49 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $479.40 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $708.50 million. Essential Utilities had a net margin of 29.52% and a return on equity of 8.62%. Essential Utilities’s quarterly revenue was down 32.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.44 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Essential Utilities, Inc. will post 2 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Essential Utilities Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.3071 per share. This represents a $1.23 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.21%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 9th. This is a positive change from Essential Utilities’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. Essential Utilities’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 58.29%.

Essential Utilities Company Profile

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.