Daiwa Securities Group Inc. Has $852,000 Holdings in Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG)

Daiwa Securities Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG) by 2.8% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 22,821 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 613 shares during the quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc.’s holdings in Essential Utilities were worth $852,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Tradewinds Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Essential Utilities by 857.5% during the first quarter. Tradewinds Capital Management LLC now owns 699 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 626 shares during the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Essential Utilities during the fourth quarter worth approximately $36,000. Tradition Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Essential Utilities by 246.0% during the fourth quarter. Tradition Wealth Management LLC now owns 955 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 679 shares during the last quarter. Voisard Asset Management Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Essential Utilities during the second quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Finally, Webster Bank N. A. bought a new stake in shares of Essential Utilities during the first quarter valued at approximately $41,000. 74.78% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Essential Utilities Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:WTRG opened at $39.33 on Monday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $39.65 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $37.81. Essential Utilities, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $32.07 and a fifty-two week high of $41.78. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.51 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 0.58 and a quick ratio of 0.44.

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 5th. The company reported $0.28 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.30 by ($0.02). Essential Utilities had a net margin of 28.74% and a return on equity of 8.16%. The company had revenue of $434.40 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $442.76 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.34 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was down .5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that Essential Utilities, Inc. will post 1.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Essential Utilities Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 3rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 12th were issued a dividend of $0.3255 per share. This represents a $1.30 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.31%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 12th. This is a boost from Essential Utilities’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. Essential Utilities’s dividend payout ratio is presently 61.61%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on Essential Utilities from $43.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Essential Utilities from $42.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Finally, Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on Essential Utilities from $42.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Essential Utilities currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $44.40.

Insider Transactions at Essential Utilities

In other news, CAO Robert A. Rubin sold 2,342 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $37.43, for a total transaction of $87,661.06. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 53,391 shares in the company, valued at $1,998,425.13. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.21% of the company’s stock.

Essential Utilities 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.