Bridgewater Advisors Inc. Takes $2.06 Million Position in Essential Utilities Inc. $WTRG

Bridgewater Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in Essential Utilities Inc. (NYSE:WTRG - Free Report) in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 54,792 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,062,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of WTRG. Fideuram Asset Management Ireland dac bought a new stake in shares of Essential Utilities in the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Evolution Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in Essential Utilities in the 1st quarter valued at $27,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd bought a new position in shares of Essential Utilities during the 4th quarter worth about $32,000. Motiv8 Investments LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Essential Utilities during the 4th quarter valued at about $35,000. Finally, Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Essential Utilities during the 1st quarter valued at about $40,000. 74.78% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Essential Utilities Trading Down 0.2%

WTRG stock opened at $40.38 on Friday. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $38.77 and a 200 day moving average price of $38.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.20, a current ratio of 0.78 and a quick ratio of 0.62. Essential Utilities Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $36.10 and a fifty-two week high of $42.37. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.60 and a beta of 0.64.

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The company reported $0.38 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.37 by $0.01. Essential Utilities had a return on equity of 8.23% and a net margin of 21.60%.The company had revenue of $530.85 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $538.90 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.38 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 3.1% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Essential Utilities Inc. will post 2.21 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Essential Utilities Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 11th will be issued a dividend of $0.3606 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 11th. This represents a $1.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.6%. This is an increase from Essential Utilities's previous quarterly dividend of $0.34. Essential Utilities's payout ratio is currently 73.47%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WTRG has been the subject of several recent research reports. Barclays increased their price target 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. Wall Street Zen raised Essential Utilities to a "sell" rating in a report on Saturday, July 4th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of Essential Utilities in a research note on Friday, May 22nd. Finally, UBS Group upped their price target on Essential Utilities from $43.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 2nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $43.00.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Essential Utilities news, insider Colleen Arnold sold 2,855 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $39.55, for a total value of $112,915.25. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 17,347 shares in the company, valued at approximately $686,073.85. This trade represents a 14.13% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.36% of the company's stock.

Essential Utilities Profile

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.

Continue following MarketBeat

Add MarketBeat as your preferred source on Google to see our latest stories in your feed.

Add As Preferred Source