Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG) Shares Sold by Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS

Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS lowered its stake in shares of Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG) by 0.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 479,238 shares of the company’s stock after selling 349 shares during the quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS’s holdings in Essential Utilities were worth $17,406,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Glenmede Trust Co. NA raised its stake in Essential Utilities by 1.6% during the 3rd quarter. Glenmede Trust Co. NA now owns 51,881 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,001,000 after acquiring an additional 803 shares in the last quarter. Synergy Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Essential Utilities by 92.8% in the 4th quarter. Synergy Asset Management LLC now owns 148,009 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,529,000 after purchasing an additional 71,222 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its holdings in shares of Essential Utilities by 16.7% in the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 6,811,851 shares of the company’s stock valued at $247,134,000 after purchasing an additional 972,803 shares during the last quarter. Brighton Jones LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Essential Utilities in the 4th quarter valued at about $638,000. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in Essential Utilities by 8.7% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,871,932 shares of the company’s stock worth $72,200,000 after buying an additional 149,162 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.78% of the company’s stock.

Essential Utilities Price Performance

Shares of WTRG opened at $38.82 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.67 billion, a PE ratio of 19.41, a P/E/G ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 0.79. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $36.52 and its two-hundred day moving average is $37.85. Essential Utilities, Inc. has a twelve month low of $33.18 and a twelve month high of $41.78. The company has a current ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 0.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17.

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 26th. The company reported $0.67 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.66 by $0.01. Essential Utilities had a net margin of 27.84% and a return on equity of 7.89%. The firm had revenue of $604.38 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $698.77 million. Research analysts anticipate that Essential Utilities, Inc. will post 1.99 earnings per share for the current year.

Essential Utilities Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed 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. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 13th. This represents a $1.30 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.35%. Essential Utilities’s dividend payout ratio is presently 59.91%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

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.