Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG) Receives $43.50 Consensus Price Target from Brokerages

Shares of Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG - Get Free Report) have been given an average recommendation of "Moderate Buy" by the six brokerages that are covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price target among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $43.50.

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Wall Street Zen raised Essential Utilities from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Sunday, April 20th. Robert W. Baird lowered their target price on Essential Utilities from $47.00 to $46.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Essential Utilities from $39.00 to $41.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their price objective 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.

Institutional Trading of Essential Utilities

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. VSM Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in Essential Utilities in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new position in shares of Essential Utilities during the first quarter worth $31,000. Valley National Advisers Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Essential Utilities during the 1st quarter valued at $33,000. American National Bank & Trust acquired a new stake in shares of Essential Utilities in the 1st quarter worth $35,000. Finally, National Pension Service boosted its position in shares of Essential Utilities by 75.0% in the 1st quarter. National Pension Service now owns 950 shares of the company's stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 407 shares in the last quarter. 74.78% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Essential Utilities Trading Down 0.9%

Shares of NYSE:WTRG traded down $0.36 on Friday, hitting $38.00. 1,679,649 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,499,982. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 0.81. Essential Utilities has a 12 month low of $33.18 and a 12 month high of $41.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 0.55 and a quick ratio of 0.39. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $39.21 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $37.90.

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 12th. The company reported $1.03 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.80 by $0.23. The company had revenue of $783.63 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $713.80 million. Essential Utilities had a net margin of 27.84% and a return on equity of 7.89%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 28.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.97 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Essential Utilities will post 1.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.