Alan B Lancz & Associates Inc. Buys Shares of 9,684 Essential Utilities Inc. $WTRG

Key Points

• Alan B Lancz & Associates Inc. acquired 9,684 shares of Essential Utilities Inc. for approximately $360,000 in the second quarter.
• Essential Utilities reported a net margin of 27.62% and earnings per share of $0.38 for the quarter, exceeding analysts’ expectations.
• The company recently increased its quarterly dividend to $0.3426, reflecting a 3.3% yield and a payout ratio of 58.80%.

Alan B Lancz & Associates Inc. purchased a new stake in Essential Utilities Inc. (NYSE:WTRG - Free Report) in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 9,684 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $360,000.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new position in shares of Essential Utilities in the 1st quarter worth about $31,000. Kennebec Savings Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Essential Utilities in the 2nd quarter valued at about $31,000. Valley National Advisers Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Essential Utilities in the 1st quarter valued at about $33,000. National Pension Service boosted its stake in Essential Utilities by 75.0% during the 1st quarter. National Pension Service now owns 950 shares of the company's stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 407 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Brooklyn Investment Group boosted its stake in Essential Utilities by 101.8% during the 1st quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 1,360 shares of the company's stock valued at $54,000 after purchasing an additional 686 shares during the last quarter. 74.78% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Essential Utilities Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:WTRG opened at $41.30 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $11.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.29 and a beta of 0.82. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $39.04 and a 200-day moving average price of $38.64. The company has a current ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13. Essential Utilities Inc. has a 12 month low of $33.18 and a 12 month high of $41.70.

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The company reported $0.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.29 by $0.09. Essential Utilities had a net margin of 27.62% and a return on equity of 10.10%. The company had revenue of $514.91 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $462.70 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.28 earnings per share. Essential Utilities's revenue was up 18.5% on a year-over-year basis. Essential Utilities has set its FY 2025 guidance at 2.070-2.110 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Essential Utilities Inc. will post 1.99 EPS for the current year.

Essential Utilities Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 2nd. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 12th were issued a $0.3426 dividend. This is an increase from Essential Utilities's previous quarterly dividend of $0.33. This represents a $1.37 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.3%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 12th. Essential Utilities's dividend payout ratio is 58.80%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Zacks Research downgraded Essential Utilities from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, August 25th. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Essential Utilities from $42.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, August 15th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Essential Utilities from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, October 11th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on shares of Essential Utilities from $43.00 to $47.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, October 10th. Finally, Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Essential Utilities from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, October 10th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $45.17.

Essential Utilities Company Profile

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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding WTRG? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Essential Utilities Inc. (NYSE:WTRG - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.