Jefferies Financial Group Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG) Stock

Key Points

• Jefferies Financial Group has raised its target price for Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG) from $43.00 to $47.00, indicating a potential upside of 15.78% from the last closing price.
• Essential Utilities reported a net income of $0.38 per share for its latest quarter, exceeding analysts' estimates of $0.29, with revenues growing 18.5% year-over-year.
• While five analysts maintain a "Buy" rating, Zacks Research and Wall Street Zen have recently shifted their ratings, showing a mixed sentiment toward the stock's performance.

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG - Get Free Report) had its target price increased by analysts at Jefferies Financial Group from $43.00 to $47.00 in a research note issued on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a "buy" rating on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group's price target would indicate a potential upside of 15.78% from the company's previous close.

A number of other brokerages have also weighed in on WTRG. Zacks Research lowered Essential Utilities from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, August 25th. Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Essential Utilities in a research report on Wednesday. Barclays set a $43.00 price target on shares of Essential Utilities and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Essential Utilities from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Friday, October 3rd. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Essential Utilities from $42.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, August 15th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Essential Utilities currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $45.17.

Essential Utilities Stock Performance

Essential Utilities stock traded up $0.12 during trading on Friday, reaching $40.59. The company had a trading volume of 286,153 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,767,603. Essential Utilities has a 52 week low of $33.18 and a 52 week high of $41.65. The company has a current ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.77 and a beta of 0.82. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $38.75 and its 200 day simple moving average is $38.58.

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The company reported $0.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.29 by $0.09. Essential Utilities had a return on equity of 10.10% and a net margin of 27.62%.The business had revenue of $514.91 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $462.70 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.28 EPS. Essential Utilities's revenue for the quarter was up 18.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Essential Utilities has set its FY 2025 guidance at 2.070-2.110 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Essential Utilities will post 1.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Essential Utilities

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Secure Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in Essential Utilities by 41.7% in the third quarter. Secure Asset Management LLC now owns 48,847 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,896,000 after purchasing an additional 14,384 shares during the last quarter. Toth Financial Advisory Corp boosted its holdings in Essential Utilities by 15.9% in the third quarter. Toth Financial Advisory Corp now owns 127,799 shares of the company's stock valued at $5,099,000 after purchasing an additional 17,504 shares during the last quarter. Whalen Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Essential Utilities in the third quarter valued at $290,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its holdings in Essential Utilities by 40.2% in the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 215,240 shares of the company's stock valued at $8,588,000 after purchasing an additional 61,690 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Essential Utilities in the third quarter valued at $237,000. 74.78% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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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