Securian Asset Management Inc. Acquires 597 Shares of Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG)

Securian Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG) by 2.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 21,208 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 597 shares during the period. Securian Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Essential Utilities were worth $792,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WTRG. Bare Financial Services Inc bought a new stake in shares of Essential Utilities during the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV increased its stake in shares of Essential Utilities by 604.0% in the fourth quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 711 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 610 shares during the period. Lindbrook Capital LLC lifted its position in shares of Essential Utilities by 78.9% during the 4th quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 737 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 325 shares during the last quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. boosted its stake in Essential Utilities by 4,210.0% during the 4th quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. now owns 862 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 842 shares during the period. Finally, VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC grew its holdings in Essential Utilities by 52.9% in the 4th quarter. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC now owns 977 shares of the company’s stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 338 shares during the last quarter. 74.78% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other 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 completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 57,756 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,149,100.76. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other news, CAO Robert A. Rubin sold 2,023 shares of Essential Utilities stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 13,358 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $488,368.48. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CAO Robert A. Rubin sold 5,565 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction 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 completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 57,756 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,149,100.76. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.21% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Essential Utilities Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE WTRG opened at $39.36 on Wednesday. Essential Utilities, Inc. has a one year low of $32.07 and a one year high of $43.26. The company has a current ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 0.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $36.82 and a 200 day simple moving average of $36.36. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.65, a PEG ratio of 3.47 and a beta of 0.80.

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, February 23rd. The company reported $0.50 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.49 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $479.40 million during 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 period last year, the firm earned $0.44 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Essential Utilities, Inc. will post 1.97 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Robert W. Baird reduced their price objective on Essential Utilities from $44.00 to $43.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, May 6th. Evercore ISI dropped their price objective on shares of Essential Utilities from $51.00 to $42.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 4th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $43.00.

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.