Farmers Trust Co. Decreases Position in Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG)

Farmers Trust Co. reduced its stake in shares of Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG) by 2.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 11,652 shares of the company’s stock after selling 318 shares during the quarter. Farmers Trust Co.’s holdings in Essential Utilities were worth $423,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of WTRG. Friedenthal Financial purchased a new stake in shares of Essential Utilities during the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new position in Essential Utilities in the 3rd quarter worth $26,000. Darwin Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Essential Utilities in the 3rd quarter valued at about $28,000. First Horizon Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of Essential Utilities by 61.4% during the third quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 773 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 294 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Truvestments Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Essential Utilities during the third quarter valued at about $42,000. 74.78% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently commented on WTRG. Jefferies Financial Group downgraded Essential Utilities from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their price target for the company from $44.00 to $41.00 in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on shares of Essential Utilities from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered shares of Essential Utilities from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $43.00 to $39.00 in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Bank of America restated a “buy” rating and issued a $45.00 target price on shares of Essential Utilities in a research note on Friday, September 20th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Essential Utilities has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $43.20.

Essential Utilities Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:WTRG traded down $0.28 on Wednesday, reaching $34.99. 873,949 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,030,637. Essential Utilities, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $33.57 and a fifty-two week high of $41.78. The business’s 50-day moving average is $38.29 and its two-hundred day moving average is $38.86. The company has a quick ratio of 0.39, a current ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.50, a PEG ratio of 3.06 and a beta of 0.86.

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG) last issued its earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The company reported $0.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.24 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $435.30 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $416.95 million. Essential Utilities had a net margin of 27.84% and a return on equity of 7.89%. Essential Utilities’s revenue was up 5.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.30 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Essential Utilities, Inc. will post 2.01 EPS for the current year.

Essential Utilities Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 3rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 10th will be given a dividend of $0.3255 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 10th. This represents a $1.30 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.72%. Essential Utilities’s dividend payout ratio is currently 65.00%.

Essential Utilities Company 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.