Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "hold (c)" rating restated by stock analysts at Weiss Ratings in a note issued to investors on Wednesday,Weiss Ratings reports.
Other research analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. UBS Group increased their price target on Essential Utilities from $42.00 to $47.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, August 15th. Wall Street Zen lowered Essential Utilities from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Friday, October 3rd. Zacks Research lowered Essential Utilities from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, August 25th. Barclays assumed coverage on Essential Utilities in a research report on Thursday, October 2nd. They set an "overweight" rating and a $42.00 target price for the company. Finally, Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on Essential Utilities from $46.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, August 4th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $44.00.
Read Our Latest Analysis on WTRG
Essential Utilities Price Performance
Shares of WTRG traded up $0.27 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $40.90. The stock had a trading volume of 563,693 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,767,677. Essential Utilities has a 12 month low of $33.18 and a 12 month high of $41.65. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.47 billion, a PE ratio of 17.55, a PEG ratio of 3.68 and a beta of 0.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a current ratio of 0.73. The company's 50-day moving average is $38.60 and its two-hundred day moving average is $38.55.
Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The company reported $0.38 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.29 by $0.09. Essential Utilities had a return on equity of 10.10% and a net margin of 27.62%.The company had revenue of $514.91 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $462.70 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.28 EPS. Essential Utilities's revenue was up 18.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Essential Utilities has set its FY 2025 guidance at 2.070-2.110 EPS. Research analysts expect that Essential Utilities will post 1.99 EPS for the current year.
Institutional Trading of Essential Utilities
Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Essential Utilities during the 2nd quarter valued at about $102,347,000. Maple Brown Abbott Ltd acquired a new position in Essential Utilities during the 1st quarter valued at about $94,251,000. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. boosted its stake in Essential Utilities by 1,572.4% during the 2nd quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 1,271,201 shares of the company's stock valued at $47,212,000 after purchasing an additional 1,195,189 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in Essential Utilities by 2.3% during the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 30,407,634 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,129,340,000 after purchasing an additional 693,988 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nuveen LLC acquired a new position in Essential Utilities during the 1st quarter valued at about $25,526,000. 74.78% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
Essential Utilities Company Profile
(
Get Free Report)
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.
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