Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG) Stake Lifted by Baird Financial Group Inc.

Baird Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG) by 160.7% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 103,689 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 63,912 shares during the quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Essential Utilities were worth $3,766,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of WTRG. BNP Paribas Financial Markets bought a new stake in Essential Utilities in the 4th quarter valued at about $5,268,000. Northern Trust Corp increased its stake in shares of Essential Utilities by 22.0% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 3,331,090 shares of the company’s stock valued at $120,985,000 after purchasing an additional 601,026 shares during the period. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Essential Utilities in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $2,405,000. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Essential Utilities by 3.4% during the fourth quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. now owns 59,608 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,165,000 after buying an additional 1,982 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Voya Investment Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Essential Utilities by 80.8% during the fourth quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC now owns 59,528 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,162,000 after buying an additional 26,611 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.78% of the company’s stock.

Essential Utilities Stock Performance

NYSE:WTRG opened at $40.74 on Friday. The company has a 50-day moving average of $39.60 and a 200-day moving average of $38.02. The firm has a market cap of $11.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a current ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 0.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17. Essential Utilities, Inc. has a twelve month low of $33.18 and a twelve month high of $41.78.

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

Essential Utilities Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 2nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 13th will be given a dividend of $0.3255 per share. This represents a $1.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.20%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 13th. Essential Utilities’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 59.91%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have weighed in on WTRG. StockNews.com raised Essential Utilities from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, April 20th. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Essential Utilities from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $41.00 price objective for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price 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, February 27th. Evercore ISI upped their price target on shares of Essential Utilities from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, UBS Group lowered their price objective on shares of Essential Utilities from $45.00 to $42.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $43.50.

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.