Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG) Shares Sold by Royal Bank of Canada

Royal Bank of Canada reduced its stake in shares of Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG - Free Report) by 4.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 389,087 shares of the company's stock after selling 19,389 shares during the period. Royal Bank of Canada owned approximately 0.14% of Essential Utilities worth $14,132,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

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

Essential Utilities Price Performance

WTRG traded up $0.12 on Friday, hitting $38.53. 4,168,002 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,479,995. Essential Utilities, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $33.18 and a fifty-two week 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 has a 50-day moving average price of $39.43 and a 200-day moving average price of $37.96. The stock has a market cap of $10.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.27, a P/E/G ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 0.85.

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on WTRG shares. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Essential Utilities from $39.00 to $41.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on shares of Essential Utilities from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Essential Utilities from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Sunday, April 20th. Finally, Robert W. Baird lowered their price objective on Essential Utilities from $47.00 to $46.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Essential Utilities currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $43.50.

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.