Q1 EPS Estimate for Essential Utilities Boosted by Analyst

Key Points

• Analysts at Zacks Research have increased their Q1 2026 earnings estimate for Essential Utilities Inc. (WTRG) from $0.89 to $0.90 per share, while maintaining a "Hold" rating on the stock.
• The company reported $0.38 EPS for the latest quarter, exceeding expectations by $0.09, with a net margin of 27.62% and revenue of $514.91 million.
• Essential Utilities has recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.3426 per share, an increase from their previous quarterly dividend, representing an annual yield of 3.5%.

Essential Utilities Inc. (NYSE:WTRG - Free Report) - Investment analysts at Zacks Research upped their Q1 2026 EPS estimates for Essential Utilities in a research report issued on Tuesday, August 26th. Zacks Research analyst Team now forecasts that the company will post earnings of $0.90 per share for the quarter, up from their prior estimate of $0.89. Zacks Research has a "Hold" rating on the stock. The consensus estimate for Essential Utilities' current full-year earnings is $1.99 per share.

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The company reported $0.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.29 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $514.91 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $462.70 million. Essential Utilities had a return on equity of 10.10% and a net margin of 27.62%.The business's revenue was up 18.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.28 earnings per share. Essential Utilities has set its FY 2025 guidance at 2.070-2.110 EPS.

A number of other equities analysts have also weighed in on WTRG. Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on shares of Essential Utilities from $46.00 to $47.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, August 4th. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Essential Utilities from $42.00 to $47.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, August 15th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Essential Utilities from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Sunday. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $44.50.

Essential Utilities Stock Performance

Shares of WTRG stock traded down $0.12 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $39.55. The company had a trading volume of 2,721,209 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,087,314. The stock has a market cap of $11.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.97, a PEG ratio of 3.63 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 0.73 and a quick ratio of 0.58. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $37.97 and its 200 day simple moving average is $38.49. Essential Utilities has a 52-week low of $33.18 and a 52-week high of $41.65.

Essential Utilities Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 2nd. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 12th will be issued a $0.3426 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, August 12th. This represents a $1.37 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.5%. This is an increase from Essential Utilities's previous quarterly dividend of $0.33. Essential Utilities's payout ratio is currently 58.80%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Essential Utilities

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Essential Utilities by 2.3% in the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 30,407,634 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,129,340,000 after buying an additional 693,988 shares in the last quarter. Amundi raised its position in Essential Utilities by 2.7% during the second quarter. Amundi now owns 5,637,022 shares of the company's stock worth $218,997,000 after acquiring an additional 146,960 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in Essential Utilities by 3.8% during the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,734,532 shares of the company's stock worth $175,313,000 after buying an additional 173,319 shares in the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc raised its holdings in shares of Essential Utilities by 4.1% in the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 3,488,920 shares of the company's stock worth $129,578,000 after acquiring an additional 136,270 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp lifted its position in shares of Essential Utilities by 22.0% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 3,331,090 shares of the company's stock valued at $120,985,000 after acquiring an additional 601,026 shares in the last quarter. 74.78% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.