Rhumbline Advisers Purchases 22,210 Shares of Essential Utilities Inc. $WTRG

Rhumbline Advisers increased its holdings in shares of Essential Utilities Inc. (NYSE:WTRG) by 2.6% in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 873,326 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 22,210 shares during the period. Rhumbline Advisers’ holdings in Essential Utilities were worth $32,435,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Essential Utilities by 24.7% in the first quarter. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC now owns 1,531 shares of the company’s stock worth $61,000 after purchasing an additional 303 shares during the last quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC increased its stake in shares of Essential Utilities by 27.6% during the 1st quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC now owns 1,406 shares of the company’s stock worth $56,000 after purchasing an additional 304 shares during the last quarter. Nissay Asset Management Corp Japan ADV raised its stake in shares of Essential Utilities by 1.0% in the first quarter. Nissay Asset Management Corp Japan ADV now owns 32,175 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,272,000 after buying an additional 307 shares during the period. Wealthspire Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Essential Utilities by 2.0% during the first quarter. Wealthspire Advisors LLC now owns 16,322 shares of the company’s stock valued at $645,000 after purchasing an additional 327 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its position in Essential Utilities by 14.3% during the second quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 2,969 shares of the company’s stock worth $110,000 after purchasing an additional 371 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 74.78% of the company’s stock.

Essential Utilities Stock Performance

Shares of WTRG stock opened at $39.57 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13. The company has a market cap of $11.20 billion, a PE ratio of 16.98, a PEG ratio of 3.11 and a beta of 0.84. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $39.53 and its 200-day simple moving average is $38.60. Essential Utilities Inc. has a 12-month low of $33.18 and a 12-month high of $42.37.

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 5th. The company reported $0.33 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.27 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $476.97 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $472.40 million. Essential Utilities had a return on equity of 10.10% and a net margin of 27.62%.The company’s revenue was up 9.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.25 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Essential Utilities Inc. will post 1.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Essential Utilities Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 12th will be paid a dividend of $0.3426 per share. This represents a $1.37 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.5%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 12th. Essential Utilities’s payout ratio is 56.85%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the company. UBS Group reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $45.00 price target (down previously from $46.00) on shares of Essential Utilities in a research report on Tuesday, October 28th. Barclays raised their target price on Essential Utilities from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, October 10th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Essential Utilities from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 21st. Baird R W downgraded Essential Utilities from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, October 27th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Essential Utilities from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, October 11th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $44.57.

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.