LaSalle St. Investment Advisors LLC Purchases New Position in Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG)

LaSalle St. Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 7,757 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $281,000.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. VSM Wealth Advisory LLC bought a new stake in Essential Utilities in the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. IFP Advisors Inc grew its stake in shares of Essential Utilities by 75.0% in the 4th quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 1,104 shares of the company's stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 473 shares during the period. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Essential Utilities in the 4th quarter worth approximately $45,000. Bessemer Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Essential Utilities by 98.9% during the 4th quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 1,565 shares of the company's stock worth $56,000 after buying an additional 778 shares during the period. Finally, Stonebridge Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in Essential Utilities in the 4th quarter valued at $60,000. Institutional investors own 74.78% of the company's stock.

Essential Utilities Price Performance

Shares of WTRG traded up $0.45 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $40.50. 962,788 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,475,619. 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 business has a 50-day moving average of $38.42 and a 200 day moving average of $37.88. Essential Utilities, Inc. has a one year low of $33.18 and a one year high of $41.78. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.25, a PEG ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 0.80.

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The company reported $0.67 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.66 by $0.01. Essential Utilities had a return on equity of 7.89% and a net margin of 27.84%. The company had revenue of $604.38 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $698.77 million. As a group, equities analysts expect that Essential Utilities, Inc. will post 1.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Essential Utilities Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 2nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 13th will be given a dividend of $0.3255 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 13th. This represents a $1.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.21%. Essential Utilities's payout ratio is presently 59.91%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WTRG has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. UBS Group cut their price objective on Essential Utilities from $45.00 to $42.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Essential Utilities from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $41.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on shares of Essential Utilities from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. StockNews.com raised Essential Utilities from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Sunday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Essential Utilities from $39.00 to $41.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Two 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 currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price 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.