Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp Has $4.38 Million Holdings in Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG)

Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp lessened its position in shares of Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG) by 16.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 120,467 shares of the company’s stock after selling 24,151 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp’s holdings in Essential Utilities were worth $4,375,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Brooklyn Investment Group bought a new stake in Essential Utilities in the 3rd quarter valued at $26,000. VSM Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Essential Utilities during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. IFP Advisors Inc boosted its position in shares of Essential Utilities by 75.0% in the fourth quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 1,104 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 473 shares during the period. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Essential Utilities in the fourth quarter valued at about $60,000. Finally, Crews Bank & Trust bought a new position in Essential Utilities during the fourth quarter worth about $90,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.78% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have issued reports on WTRG shares. Evercore ISI increased their target price on shares of Essential Utilities from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Jefferies Financial Group raised Essential Utilities from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $41.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Essential Utilities from $39.00 to $41.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, UBS Group reduced their target price on Essential Utilities from $45.00 to $42.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $43.50.

Essential Utilities Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:WTRG opened at $39.30 on Monday. Essential Utilities, Inc. has a 1 year low of $33.18 and a 1 year high of $41.78. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 0.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 0.55 and a quick ratio of 0.39. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $37.00 and its 200 day simple moving average is $37.80.

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The company reported $0.67 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.66 by $0.01. Essential Utilities had a return on equity of 7.89% and a net margin of 27.84%. The company had revenue of $604.38 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $698.77 million. As a group, research analysts predict that Essential Utilities, Inc. will post 1.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Essential Utilities Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 2nd. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 13th will be 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 is Tuesday, May 13th. Essential Utilities’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 59.91%.

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.