Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A. Invests $263,000 in Essential Utilities Inc. $WTRG

Key Points

• Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A. invested approximately $263,000 in Essential Utilities Inc. by acquiring 6,673 shares during the first quarter.
• Despite some analyst ratings ranging from Buy to Sell, the consensus price target for Essential Utilities is currently set at $44.50, with an overall rating of "Moderate Buy."
• Essential Utilities has recently increased its quarterly dividend payment to $0.3426 per share, reflecting an annualized dividend yield of 3.5%.

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A. acquired a new position in shares of Essential Utilities Inc. (NYSE:WTRG - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 6,673 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $263,000.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Essential Utilities during the first quarter worth $31,000. Valley National Advisers Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Essential Utilities during the first quarter worth $33,000. American National Bank & Trust acquired a new stake in shares of Essential Utilities during the first quarter worth $35,000. National Pension Service increased its position in shares of Essential Utilities by 75.0% during the first quarter. National Pension Service now owns 950 shares of the company's stock worth $38,000 after buying an additional 407 shares during the period. Finally, CX Institutional acquired a new stake in Essential Utilities in the first quarter worth $42,000. 74.78% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WTRG has been the subject of a number of research reports. UBS Group raised 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. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on shares of Essential Utilities from $46.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, August 4th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut shares of Essential Utilities from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Saturday. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Essential Utilities presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $44.50.

Essential Utilities Trading Up 1.0%

NYSE:WTRG opened at $39.5940 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.99, a PEG ratio of 3.64 and a beta of 0.78. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $37.76 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $38.34. Essential Utilities Inc. has a 12 month low of $33.18 and a 12 month high of $41.65. 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 (NYSE:WTRG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 31st. The company reported $0.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.29 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $514.91 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $462.70 million. Essential Utilities had a net margin of 27.62% and a return on equity of 10.10%. The business's revenue was up 18.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.28 earnings per share. Essential Utilities has set its FY 2025 guidance at 2.070-2.110 EPS. Analysts expect that Essential Utilities Inc. will post 1.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Essential Utilities Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 2nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 12th will be issued a dividend of $0.3426 per share. This is an increase from Essential Utilities's previous quarterly dividend of $0.33. This represents a $1.37 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.5%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, August 12th. Essential Utilities's dividend payout ratio is 58.80%.

Essential Utilities 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.

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