Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC Invests $302,000 in Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG)

Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG) in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor bought 7,496 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $302,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WTRG. Friedenthal Financial bought a new stake in Essential Utilities during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Voisard Asset Management Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Essential Utilities in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Essential Utilities by 81.2% during the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,149 shares of the company’s stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 515 shares in the last quarter. Bfsg LLC grew its stake in Essential Utilities by 157.0% in the third quarter. Bfsg LLC now owns 1,190 shares of the company’s stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 727 shares during the period. Finally, Mascoma Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Essential Utilities in the second quarter worth $66,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.78% of the company’s stock.

Essential Utilities Trading Up 3.9 %

NYSE:WTRG opened at $40.13 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $10.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.58, a PEG ratio of 3.32 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a quick ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 0.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $39.01 and its 200-day moving average price is $38.66. Essential Utilities, Inc. has a 52 week low of $33.28 and a 52 week high of $41.78.

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG) last issued its earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The company reported $0.25 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.24 by $0.01. Essential Utilities had a return on equity of 8.16% and a net margin of 28.74%. The business had revenue of $435.30 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $416.95 million. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.30 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 5.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Essential Utilities, Inc. will post 1.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Essential Utilities Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 2nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 12th will be given a $0.3255 dividend. This represents a $1.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.24%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 12th. Essential Utilities’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 63.41%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on WTRG shares. Evercore ISI upped their target price on shares of Essential Utilities from $42.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on shares of Essential Utilities from $43.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on shares of Essential Utilities in a report on Monday, October 7th. They set a “buy” rating and a $44.00 target price for the company. Bank of America restated a “buy” rating and issued a $45.00 price target on shares of Essential Utilities in a research note on Friday, September 20th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on Essential Utilities from $45.00 to $43.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $44.40.

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.