Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG) Shares Bought by Moors & Cabot Inc.

Moors & Cabot Inc. increased its position in shares of Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG) by 6.0% in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 21,902 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,239 shares during the period. Moors & Cabot Inc.’s holdings in Essential Utilities were worth $818,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Essential Utilities by 24.7% during the 1st quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 152,120 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,636,000 after buying an additional 30,152 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its position in Essential Utilities by 12.1% during the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 139,534 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,171,000 after acquiring an additional 15,009 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its holdings in shares of Essential Utilities by 17,553.7% in the first quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 3,425,350 shares of the company’s stock valued at $126,156,000 after purchasing an additional 3,405,947 shares in the last quarter. Epoch Investment Partners Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Essential Utilities in the first quarter valued at approximately $46,280,000. Finally, Boston Trust Walden Corp increased its stake in shares of Essential Utilities by 350.3% during the 2nd quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp now owns 903,372 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,723,000 after purchasing an additional 702,760 shares in the last quarter. 74.78% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Essential Utilities from $42.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on Essential Utilities from $42.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, Robert W. Baird upped their target price on shares of Essential Utilities from $43.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $44.40.

Insider Transactions at Essential Utilities

In related news, CAO Robert A. Rubin sold 2,342 shares of Essential Utilities stock in a transaction on Monday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $37.43, for a total value of $87,661.06. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 53,391 shares in the company, valued at $1,998,425.13. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.21% of the company’s stock.

Essential Utilities Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:WTRG opened at $38.74 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $10.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.36, a P/E/G ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 0.85. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $39.76 and a 200-day simple moving average of $37.88. Essential Utilities, Inc. has a 52 week low of $32.07 and a 52 week high of $41.78. The company has a quick ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 0.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14.

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 5th. The company reported $0.28 EPS 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 for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $442.76 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.34 EPS. The company’s revenue was down .5% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that Essential Utilities, Inc. will post 1.94 EPS for the current year.

Essential Utilities Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 3rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 12th were issued a $0.3255 dividend. This represents a $1.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.36%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 12th. This is a positive change from Essential Utilities’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. Essential Utilities’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 61.61%.

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.