T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. Sells 25,906 Shares of Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG)

T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. decreased its position in Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG - Free Report) by 3.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 802,660 shares of the company's stock after selling 25,906 shares during the quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. owned about 0.29% of Essential Utilities worth $29,153,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of WTRG. VSM Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in Essential Utilities during the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. IFP Advisors Inc boosted its stake in shares of Essential Utilities by 75.0% during the 4th quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 1,104 shares of the company's stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 473 shares in the last quarter. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Essential Utilities during the 4th quarter valued at about $45,000. Bessemer Group Inc. boosted its position in Essential Utilities by 98.9% during the fourth quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 1,565 shares of the company's stock worth $56,000 after purchasing an additional 778 shares during the period. Finally, Stonebridge Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Essential Utilities in the fourth quarter worth $60,000. 74.78% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Essential Utilities Price Performance

NYSE WTRG traded down $0.40 on Thursday, hitting $40.74. 1,182,831 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,669,135. Essential Utilities, Inc. has a 1-year low of $33.18 and a 1-year high of $41.78. The company has a market cap of $11.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.37, a P/E/G ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 0.80. 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 firm has a 50 day moving average of $39.20 and a two-hundred day moving average of $38.01.

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

Essential Utilities Dividend Announcement

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 3.20%. Essential Utilities's payout ratio is presently 59.91%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently commented on WTRG. UBS Group dropped their price objective on Essential Utilities from $45.00 to $42.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. StockNews.com raised shares of Essential Utilities from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Sunday, April 20th. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Essential Utilities from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $41.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Wells Fargo & Company upped 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. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their target price on Essential Utilities from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Essential Utilities has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target 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.