Aspire Private Capital LLC Makes New Investment in Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG)

Aspire Private Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 21,176 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $791,000.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in WTRG. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV increased its holdings in Essential Utilities by 604.0% in the fourth quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 711 shares of the company's stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 610 shares during the last quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC increased its stake in shares of Essential Utilities by 78.9% in the 4th quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 737 shares of the company's stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 325 shares during the last quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. raised its position in shares of Essential Utilities by 4,210.0% in the 4th quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. now owns 862 shares of the company's stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 842 shares during the period. Resources Management Corp CT ADV grew its holdings in Essential Utilities by 250.0% during the third quarter. Resources Management Corp CT ADV now owns 1,050 shares of the company's stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 750 shares during the period. Finally, Orion Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Essential Utilities during the third quarter worth $39,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.78% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Essential Utilities

In related news, CAO Robert A. Rubin sold 5,565 shares of the business's stock in a transaction 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 filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.21% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

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

Essential Utilities Stock Up 1.3 %

Shares of WTRG stock traded up $0.46 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $35.90. 1,740,174 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,803,356. Essential Utilities, Inc. has a 52 week low of $32.07 and a 52 week high of $44.05. The company has a current ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16. The business has a 50 day moving average of $35.69 and a two-hundred day moving average of $35.67. The company has a market capitalization of $9.82 billion, a PE ratio of 19.05, a PEG ratio of 3.08 and a beta of 0.82.

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

Essential Utilities Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 10th will be issued a $0.3071 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 9th. This is an increase from Essential Utilities's previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. This represents a $1.23 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.42%. Essential Utilities's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 66.13%.

Essential Utilities 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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