Zacks Research Issues Positive Outlook for WTRG Earnings

Key Points

• Zacks Research raised its Q1 2027 EPS estimate for Essential Utilities to $1.06 from $1.02 and projects full-year 2027 earnings of $2.41 per share.
• Essential Utilities recently reported quarterly EPS of $0.38, narrowly beating estimates, while revenue rose 3.1% year over year to $530.85 million but fell short of expectations.
• The company increased its quarterly dividend to $0.3606 per share, implying an annualized dividend of $1.44 and a 3.5% yield; analysts maintain a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating with a $43 price target.

Essential Utilities Inc. (NYSE:WTRG - Free Report) - Equities research analysts at Zacks Research upped their Q1 2027 earnings per share estimates for Essential Utilities in a report released on Tuesday, August 25th. Zacks Research analyst Team now expects that the company will post earnings of $1.06 per share for the quarter, up from their prior estimate of $1.02. The consensus estimate for Essential Utilities' current full-year earnings is $2.21 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Essential Utilities' Q2 2027 earnings at $0.40 EPS, Q3 2027 earnings at $0.38 EPS, Q4 2027 earnings at $0.58 EPS, FY2027 earnings at $2.41 EPS, Q1 2028 earnings at $1.12 EPS and Q2 2028 earnings at $0.37 EPS.

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 5th. The company reported $0.38 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.37 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $530.85 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $538.90 million. Essential Utilities had a return on equity of 8.23% and a net margin of 21.60%.The company's revenue was up 3.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.38 EPS.

Other research analysts have also issued reports about the company. UBS Group increased their price objective on Essential Utilities from $43.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 2nd. Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of Essential Utilities in a research note on Wednesday, August 19th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Essential Utilities to a "sell" rating in a report on Saturday, July 4th. Finally, Barclays increased their target price on shares of Essential Utilities from $38.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $43.00.

Essential Utilities Price Performance

Shares of WTRG stock opened at $40.74 on Wednesday. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $39.21 and its 200 day simple moving average is $39.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.20, a current ratio of 0.78 and a quick ratio of 0.62. The firm has a market cap of $11.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.79 and a beta of 0.64. Essential Utilities has a one year low of $36.10 and a one year high of $42.37.

Essential Utilities Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 11th will be given a dividend of $0.3606 per share. This is a boost from Essential Utilities's previous quarterly dividend of $0.34. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, August 11th. This represents a $1.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.5%. Essential Utilities's dividend payout ratio is currently 73.47%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Colleen Arnold sold 2,855 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $39.55, for a total transaction of $112,915.25. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 17,347 shares of the company's stock, valued at $686,073.85. This trade represents a 14.13% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.36% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Essential Utilities

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of WTRG. Fideuram Asset Management Ireland dac bought a new position in shares of Essential Utilities in the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. Evolution Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in Essential Utilities during the 1st quarter worth about $27,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd acquired a new stake in Essential Utilities in the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in Essential Utilities in the 2nd quarter valued at about $33,000. Finally, Motiv8 Investments LLC acquired a new stake in Essential Utilities in the 4th quarter valued at about $35,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.78% of the company's stock.

About Essential Utilities

Essential Utilities, Inc, formerly known as Aqua America, is a publicly traded water and natural gas utility holding company. Through its regulated water and wastewater subsidiaries, the company provides essential water services to residential, commercial and industrial customers. In addition, Essential Utilities delivers natural gas distribution services in Pennsylvania through its Peoples Gas subsidiary, offering integrated utility solutions under a unified corporate framework.

The company traces its roots to the Philadelphia Suburban Water Company, founded in 1886 to serve growing communities outside Philadelphia.

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