Xponance Inc. Increases Stock Holdings in Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG)

Xponance Inc. boosted its position in Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG) by 2.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 29,957 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 610 shares during the quarter. Xponance Inc.’s holdings in Essential Utilities were worth $1,119,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Choreo LLC raised its holdings in Essential Utilities by 3.1% in the third quarter. Choreo LLC now owns 10,417 shares of the company’s stock worth $358,000 after purchasing an additional 311 shares in the last quarter. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich raised its holdings in Essential Utilities by 3.1% in the third quarter. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich now owns 10,831 shares of the company’s stock worth $372,000 after purchasing an additional 328 shares in the last quarter. Hamilton Point Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Essential Utilities by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Hamilton Point Investment Advisors LLC now owns 69,788 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,607,000 after purchasing an additional 342 shares in the last quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Essential Utilities by 3.0% during the third quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. now owns 12,631 shares of the company’s stock valued at $434,000 after acquiring an additional 368 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Spirit of America Management Corp NY increased its holdings in shares of Essential Utilities by 3.1% during the fourth quarter. Spirit of America Management Corp NY now owns 13,200 shares of the company’s stock valued at $493,000 after acquiring an additional 400 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 74.78% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

Essential Utilities Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:WTRG opened at $36.54 on Thursday. Essential Utilities, Inc. has a 1-year low of $32.07 and a 1-year high of $44.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 0.62 and a quick ratio of 0.48. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $35.74 and a 200-day moving average price of $35.72. The company has a market capitalization of $9.99 billion, a PE ratio of 19.65, a PEG ratio of 3.15 and a beta of 0.82.

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, February 23rd. The company reported $0.50 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.49 by $0.01. Essential Utilities had a return on equity of 8.68% and a net margin of 24.26%. The company had revenue of $479.40 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $708.50 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.44 EPS. Essential Utilities’s revenue for the quarter was down 32.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts expect that Essential Utilities, Inc. will post 2 EPS 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. Investors of record on Friday, May 10th will be issued a $0.3071 dividend. This represents a $1.23 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.36%. This is an increase from Essential Utilities’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 9th. Essential Utilities’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 66.13%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CAO Robert A. Rubin sold 5,565 shares of Essential Utilities stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $37.21, for a total value of $207,073.65. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 57,756 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,149,100.76. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 0.21% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.