Praxis Investment Management Inc. Lowers Stake in Essential Utilities Inc. $WTRG

Praxis Investment Management Inc. reduced its holdings in shares of Essential Utilities Inc. (NYSE:WTRG) by 32.4% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 15,970 shares of the company’s stock after selling 7,670 shares during the period. Praxis Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Essential Utilities were worth $593,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Headlands Technologies LLC purchased a new position in Essential Utilities during the 1st quarter worth $31,000. Kennebec Savings Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Essential Utilities in the second quarter valued at about $31,000. Valley National Advisers Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Essential Utilities in the first quarter valued at about $33,000. National Pension Service boosted its holdings in shares of Essential Utilities by 75.0% in the first quarter. National Pension Service now owns 950 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 407 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Brooklyn Investment Group boosted its holdings in shares of Essential Utilities by 101.8% in the first quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 1,360 shares of the company’s stock valued at $54,000 after acquiring an additional 686 shares in the last quarter. 74.78% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Essential Utilities Stock Down 0.1%

WTRG stock opened at $41.30 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $11.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.72, a P/E/G ratio of 4.30 and a beta of 0.82. Essential Utilities Inc. has a 52 week low of $33.18 and a 52 week high of $41.70. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $39.04 and its 200 day moving average price is $38.65. The company has a current ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13.

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 31st. The company reported $0.38 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.29 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $514.91 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $462.70 million. Essential Utilities had a net margin of 27.62% and a return on equity of 10.10%. The firm’s revenue was up 18.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.28 earnings per share. Essential Utilities has set its FY 2025 guidance at 2.070-2.110 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Essential Utilities Inc. will post 1.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Essential Utilities Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 2nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 12th were given a dividend of $0.3426 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 12th. This is an increase from Essential Utilities’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.33. This represents a $1.37 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.3%. Essential Utilities’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 58.80%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Essential Utilities from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, October 11th. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Essential Utilities from $42.00 to $47.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 15th. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on shares of Essential Utilities from $46.00 to $47.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, August 4th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on shares of Essential Utilities from $43.00 to $47.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 10th. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded shares of Essential Utilities from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, August 25th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $45.17.

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.