Bank of Montreal Can Lowers Stock Position in Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG)

Bank of Montreal Can decreased its holdings in Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG) by 46.1% in the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 625,213 shares of the company’s stock after selling 534,381 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can’s holdings in Essential Utilities were worth $23,414,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Essential Utilities by 4.5% during the second quarter. Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 6,947 shares of the company’s stock worth $259,000 after buying an additional 297 shares during the period. Sanibel Captiva Trust Company Inc. grew its stake in shares of Essential Utilities by 5.4% in the 1st quarter. Sanibel Captiva Trust Company Inc. now owns 6,491 shares of the company’s stock valued at $240,000 after purchasing an additional 334 shares during the last quarter. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Essential Utilities by 5.5% in the first quarter. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. now owns 6,506 shares of the company’s stock valued at $241,000 after purchasing an additional 339 shares during the period. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC raised its stake in shares of Essential Utilities by 8.7% during the second quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 4,416 shares of the company’s stock worth $165,000 after purchasing an additional 352 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Affirmative Financial Network lifted its holdings in shares of Essential Utilities by 5.1% during the first quarter. First Affirmative Financial Network now owns 7,910 shares of the company’s stock worth $293,000 after purchasing an additional 386 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.78% of the company’s stock.

Essential Utilities Price Performance

WTRG stock opened at $38.40 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $10.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.20, a PEG ratio of 3.40 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a current ratio of 0.58, a quick ratio of 0.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $39.44 and a 200-day moving average of $38.00. Essential Utilities, Inc. has a 12-month low of $32.07 and a 12-month high of $41.78.

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG) last posted its earnings results 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 return on equity of 8.16% and a net margin of 28.74%. The firm had revenue of $434.40 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $442.76 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.34 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down .5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts expect that Essential Utilities, Inc. will post 1.95 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. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 12th were issued a dividend of $0.3255 per share. This is an increase from Essential Utilities’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. This represents a $1.30 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.39%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 12th. Essential Utilities’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 61.61%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Bank of America reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $45.00 target price on shares of Essential Utilities in a report on Friday, September 20th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Essential Utilities from $42.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Evercore ISI increased their target price on Essential Utilities from $42.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on Essential Utilities from $43.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Essential Utilities presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $44.50.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

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.