Essential Utilities Inc. $WTRG Stock Holdings Lifted by Russell Investments Group Ltd.

Key Points

• Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its stake in Essential Utilities Inc. by 11.0% in the first quarter, owning approximately 0.08% of the company, valued at about $8.2 million.
• Essential Utilities recently increased its quarterly dividend to $0.3426 per share, which provides an annualized yield of 3.5% for investors.
• The company's earnings report showed a profit of $0.38 per share, exceeding expectations, with revenue growth of 18.5% year-over-year, reaching $514.91 million.

Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Essential Utilities Inc. (NYSE:WTRG - Free Report) by 11.0% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 207,565 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 20,503 shares during the quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. owned about 0.08% of Essential Utilities worth $8,202,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new position in shares of Essential Utilities in the 1st quarter valued at $31,000. Valley National Advisers Inc. acquired a new position in Essential Utilities in the first quarter valued at $33,000. American National Bank & Trust acquired a new position in Essential Utilities in the first quarter valued at $35,000. Orion Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Essential Utilities during the fourth quarter valued at about $41,000. Finally, CX Institutional acquired a new stake in Essential Utilities during the first quarter worth about $42,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.78% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WTRG has been the topic of several research analyst reports. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Essential Utilities from $42.00 to $47.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, August 15th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Essential Utilities from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, July 26th. Finally, Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on shares of Essential Utilities from $46.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, August 4th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Essential Utilities has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $44.50.

Essential Utilities Stock Up 1.0%

Shares of NYSE WTRG traded up $0.3740 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $39.5940. 2,072,125 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,940,556. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a current ratio of 0.73. Essential Utilities Inc. has a 52-week low of $33.18 and a 52-week high of $41.65. The business's fifty day moving average price is $37.76 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $38.30. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.10 billion, a PE ratio of 16.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.60 and a beta of 0.78.

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 for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.29 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $514.91 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $462.70 million. Essential Utilities had a net margin of 27.62% and a return on equity of 10.10%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 18.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter 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 forecast that Essential Utilities Inc. will post 1.99 EPS for the current year.

Essential Utilities Increases Dividend

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

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.