Janus Henderson Group PLC Acquires 11,253 Shares of Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG)

Janus Henderson Group PLC grew its stake in shares of Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG - Free Report) by 24.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 58,006 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 11,253 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC's holdings in Essential Utilities were worth $2,107,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Essential Utilities during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $102,600,000. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in Essential Utilities by 8.1% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 30,061,135 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,091,820,000 after acquiring an additional 2,245,256 shares in the last quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA boosted its holdings in Essential Utilities by 31.2% during the 4th quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 6,726,215 shares of the company's stock worth $244,296,000 after acquiring an additional 1,597,672 shares during the last quarter. Cohen & Steers Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Essential Utilities in the 4th quarter worth $52,355,000. Finally, Ensign Peak Advisors Inc raised its holdings in shares of Essential Utilities by 74.6% in the fourth quarter. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc now owns 1,593,053 shares of the company's stock valued at $57,860,000 after purchasing an additional 680,760 shares during the last quarter. 74.78% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently weighed in on WTRG shares. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Essential Utilities from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Sunday, April 20th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Essential Utilities from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $41.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Robert W. Baird decreased their price target on Essential Utilities from $47.00 to $46.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Essential Utilities from $39.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their price objective on Essential Utilities from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $43.50.

Essential Utilities Trading Down 1.1%

NYSE:WTRG opened at $38.89 on Thursday. Essential Utilities, Inc. has a 12 month low of $33.18 and a 12 month high of $41.78. The company has a current ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 0.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17. The firm's 50 day moving average is $39.47 and its 200 day moving average is $38.01. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.90 billion, a PE ratio of 19.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 0.85.

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Monday, May 12th. The company reported $1.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.80 by $0.23. Essential Utilities had a return on equity of 7.89% and a net margin of 27.84%. The business had revenue of $783.63 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $713.80 million. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.97 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 28.0% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Essential Utilities, Inc. will post 1.99 earnings per share for the current year.

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.

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