SG Americas Securities LLC Takes $10.03 Million Position in Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG)

SG Americas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 253,737 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $10,030,000. SG Americas Securities LLC owned approximately 0.09% of Essential Utilities as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Essential Utilities by 8.0% during the 1st quarter. Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC now owns 25,255 shares of the company's stock valued at $998,000 after buying an additional 1,867 shares in the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Essential Utilities by 220.3% during the 1st quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 3,248 shares of the company's stock valued at $128,000 after buying an additional 2,234 shares in the last quarter. Toth Financial Advisory Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Essential Utilities by 6.9% during the 1st quarter. Toth Financial Advisory Corp now owns 92,735 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,666,000 after buying an additional 5,979 shares in the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its holdings in shares of Essential Utilities by 465.4% during the 1st quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 2,612 shares of the company's stock valued at $103,000 after buying an additional 2,150 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First National Corp MA ADV boosted its holdings in shares of Essential Utilities by 111.6% during the 1st quarter. First National Corp MA ADV now owns 61,128 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,416,000 after buying an additional 32,237 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 74.78% of the company's stock.

Essential Utilities Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE WTRG traded down $0.36 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $38.00. 1,679,649 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,504,190. Essential Utilities, Inc. has a 1 year low of $33.18 and a 1 year high of $41.78. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 0.39 and a current ratio of 0.55. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $39.22 and a 200 day moving average of $37.87.

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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

About Essential Utilities

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.