Essential Utilities Inc. $WTRG Shares Sold by Jones Financial Companies Lllp

Key Points

• Jones Financial Companies Lllp reduced its stake in Essential Utilities Inc. by 39.7%, selling 95,442 shares during the first quarter, leaving them with 144,791 shares valued at approximately $5.87 million.
• Essential Utilities reported earnings per share (EPS) of $0.38 for the last quarter, surpassing analyst expectations of $0.29, with a revenue of $514.91 million, which was also above projected figures.
• The company increased its quarterly dividend to $0.3426 per share, reflecting an annualized dividend of $1.37 and a dividend yield of 3.6%, a rise from the previous dividend of $0.33.

Jones Financial Companies Lllp reduced its position in Essential Utilities Inc. (NYSE:WTRG - Free Report) by 39.7% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 144,791 shares of the company's stock after selling 95,442 shares during the quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp owned about 0.05% of Essential Utilities worth $5,869,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also 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 raised its position in Essential Utilities by 75.0% in the first quarter. National Pension Service now owns 950 shares of the company's stock worth $38,000 after acquiring an additional 407 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CX Institutional purchased a new position in Essential Utilities in the first quarter worth $42,000. 74.78% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Essential Utilities Price Performance

Shares of WTRG traded down $0.32 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $37.99. 384,635 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,738,943. The company has a quick ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.66 billion, a PE ratio of 16.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.52 and a beta of 0.83. Essential Utilities Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $33.18 and a fifty-two week high of $41.65. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $38.25 and a 200 day simple moving average of $38.64.

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 31st. The company reported $0.38 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.29 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $514.91 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $462.70 million. Essential Utilities had a return on equity of 10.10% and a net margin of 27.62%.The business's revenue for the quarter 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. As a group, research analysts predict that Essential Utilities Inc. will post 1.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Essential Utilities Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 2nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 12th were paid a $0.3426 dividend. This represents a $1.37 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, August 12th. This is a positive change from Essential Utilities's previous quarterly dividend of $0.33. Essential Utilities's dividend payout ratio is 58.80%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WTRG has been the subject of several research analyst reports. UBS Group increased their price objective on Essential Utilities from $42.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, August 15th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Essential Utilities from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Sunday, August 31st. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on Essential Utilities from $46.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, August 4th. Finally, Zacks Research cut Essential Utilities from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, August 25th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $44.50.

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.