Jefferies Financial Group Inc. Takes $1.43 Million Position in Essential Utilities Inc. (NYSE:WTRG)

Key Points

• Jefferies Financial Group Inc. has acquired 36,202 shares of Essential Utilities Inc. (NYSE:WTRG), valued at approximately $1,431,000, marking a new position in the company.
• Essential Utilities reported a net revenue of $514.91 million for the last quarter, surpassing analysts' expectations and reflecting an 18.5% increase compared to the previous year.
• The company recently increased its quarterly dividend to $0.3426 per share, representing a dividend yield of 3.6% and a payout ratio of 58.30%.

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Essential Utilities Inc. (NYSE:WTRG - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 36,202 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,431,000.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of WTRG. Brighton Jones LLC bought a new stake in shares of Essential Utilities in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $638,000. American Century Companies Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Essential Utilities in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $4,415,000. Schroder Investment Management Group grew its stake in shares of Essential Utilities by 121.4% in the 4th quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 109,618 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,970,000 after purchasing an additional 60,107 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its position in Essential Utilities by 4.9% during the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,046,443 shares of the company's stock worth $38,007,000 after acquiring an additional 49,044 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in Essential Utilities by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,317,312 shares of the company's stock worth $156,526,000 after acquiring an additional 11,336 shares during the last quarter. 74.78% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Essential Utilities Trading Up 0.3%

WTRG traded up $0.12 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $38.30. The stock had a trading volume of 2,657,135 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,761,756. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.44, a P/E/G ratio of 3.51 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 0.57 and a current ratio of 0.73. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $37.56 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $37.97. Essential Utilities Inc. has a 52 week low of $33.18 and a 52 week high of $41.65.

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 31st. The company reported $0.38 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.29 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $514.91 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $462.70 million. Essential Utilities had a return on equity of 10.10% and a net margin of 27.62%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 18.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.28 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Essential Utilities Inc. will post 1.99 EPS for the current year.

Essential Utilities Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 2nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 12th will be paid a $0.3426 dividend. This is an increase from Essential Utilities's previous quarterly dividend of $0.33. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 12th. This represents a $1.37 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.6%. Essential Utilities's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 55.79%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WTRG has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded Essential Utilities from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, July 26th. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on Essential Utilities from $46.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Essential Utilities has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $43.67.

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.