Resolution Capital Ltd Acquires New Position in Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG)

Resolution Capital Ltd purchased a new stake in Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 51,557 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,873,000.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WTRG. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its stake in Essential Utilities by 28.7% in the 4th quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 60,605 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,338,000 after acquiring an additional 13,518 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its position in shares of Essential Utilities by 219.4% in the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 122,581 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,452,000 after acquiring an additional 84,208 shares during the period. Hennessy Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Essential Utilities by 2.8% in the fourth quarter. Hennessy Advisors Inc. now owns 175,500 shares of the company's stock valued at $6,374,000 after buying an additional 4,800 shares during the period. Folger Nolan Fleming Douglas Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Essential Utilities by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Folger Nolan Fleming Douglas Capital Management Inc. now owns 201,926 shares of the company's stock valued at $7,334,000 after acquiring an additional 1,719 shares during the period. Finally, HB Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Essential Utilities by 8.5% during the 4th quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC now owns 10,919 shares of the company's stock worth $397,000 after purchasing an additional 856 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 74.78% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WTRG has been the subject of several analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Essential Utilities from $39.00 to $41.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Robert W. Baird decreased their price target on Essential Utilities from $47.00 to $46.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, May 13th. StockNews.com upgraded Essential Utilities from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Sunday, April 20th. Evercore ISI boosted their target price on Essential Utilities from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Essential Utilities from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $41.00 target price for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $43.50.

Essential Utilities Stock Performance

Shares of Essential Utilities stock traded up $0.25 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $39.40. 466,276 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,628,079. Essential Utilities, Inc. has a 12 month low of $33.18 and a 12 month high of $41.78. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $39.48 and a 200 day simple moving average of $37.99. The company has a market capitalization of $11.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.70, a P/E/G ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 0.39 and a current ratio of 0.55.

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 12th. The company reported $1.03 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.80 by $0.23. Essential Utilities had a return on equity of 7.89% and a net margin of 27.84%. The business had revenue of $783.63 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $713.80 million. Essential Utilities's revenue was up 28.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.97 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Essential Utilities, Inc. will post 1.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Essential Utilities Announces Dividend

The business 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 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.30%. Essential Utilities's payout ratio is presently 58.30%.

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.