Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC Increases Stock Position in Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG)

Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC boosted its position in Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG - Free Report) by 240.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 47,202 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 33,318 shares during the period. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC's holdings in Essential Utilities were worth $1,763,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. LPL Financial LLC boosted its stake in Essential Utilities by 14.2% during the third quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 235,841 shares of the company's stock valued at $8,096,000 after buying an additional 29,372 shares during the period. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky boosted its position in shares of Essential Utilities by 94.0% during the third quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky now owns 81,799 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,808,000 after purchasing an additional 39,643 shares in the last quarter. Mariner LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Essential Utilities by 9.9% during the 3rd quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 34,360 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,180,000 after buying an additional 3,104 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Essential Utilities in the fourth quarter worth about $3,583,000. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Essential Utilities by 0.4% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 27,168,585 shares of the company's stock valued at $932,698,000 after purchasing an additional 99,560 shares in the last quarter. 74.78% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Essential Utilities Stock Performance

WTRG traded up $0.26 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $39.67. 1,046,262 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,746,070. The company's 50-day moving average is $36.60 and its 200 day moving average is $36.22. The company has a quick ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 0.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.85 billion, a PE ratio of 18.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.48 and a beta of 0.80. Essential Utilities, Inc. has a 52 week low of $32.07 and a 52 week high of $43.26.

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, February 23rd. The company reported $0.50 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.49 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $479.40 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $708.50 million. Essential Utilities had a net margin of 29.52% and a return on equity of 8.62%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 32.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.44 earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect that Essential Utilities, Inc. will post 1.97 EPS for the current year.

Essential Utilities Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 10th will be issued a $0.3071 dividend. This is an increase from Essential Utilities's previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 9th. This represents a $1.23 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.10%. Essential Utilities's dividend payout ratio is currently 58.29%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have commented on WTRG. Evercore ISI dropped 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. Robert W. Baird cut their price objective on shares of Essential Utilities from $44.00 to $43.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, May 6th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $43.00.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CAO Robert A. Rubin sold 2,023 shares of the business's 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 completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 13,358 shares in the company, valued at $488,368.48. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other Essential Utilities news, CAO Robert A. Rubin sold 5,565 shares of the firm'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 sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 57,756 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,149,100.76. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Robert A. Rubin sold 2,023 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 13,358 shares of the company's stock, 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 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.