Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG) Updates FY 2024 Earnings Guidance

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG - Get Free Report) updated its FY 2024 earnings guidance on Friday. The company provided earnings per share guidance of 2.000- for the period, compared to the consensus earnings per share estimate of 1.980. The company issued revenue guidance of -.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, Evercore ISI cut their price target on Essential Utilities from $51.00 to $42.00 and set an outperform rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 4th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Essential Utilities has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $43.00.

Essential Utilities Price Performance

Shares of WTRG traded up $0.08 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $37.76. The company had a trading volume of 1,473,728 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,801,550. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 0.62 and a quick ratio of 0.48. The company has a market capitalization of $10.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.31, a P/E/G ratio of 3.24 and a beta of 0.80. Essential Utilities has a twelve month low of $32.07 and a twelve month high of $43.74. The company's 50-day moving average is $35.80 and its 200-day moving average is $35.83.

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, February 23rd. The company reported $0.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.49 by $0.01. Essential Utilities had a return on equity of 8.68% and a net margin of 24.26%. The firm had revenue of $479.40 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $708.50 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.44 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 32.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Essential Utilities will post 2 EPS for the current year.

Essential Utilities Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 10th will be given a $0.3071 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 9th. This is a positive change from Essential Utilities's previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. This represents a $1.23 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.25%. Essential Utilities's payout ratio is 66.13%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CAO Robert A. Rubin sold 2,023 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.56, for a total transaction of $73,960.88. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 13,358 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $488,368.48. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, CAO Robert A. Rubin sold 5,565 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $37.21, for a total transaction of $207,073.65. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 57,756 shares in the company, valued at $2,149,100.76. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CAO Robert A. Rubin sold 2,023 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.56, for a total transaction of $73,960.88. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 13,358 shares in the company, valued at $488,368.48. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.21% of the company's stock.

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.