Analysts Set Essential Utilities Inc. (NYSE:WTRG) Target Price at $43.29

Shares of Essential Utilities Inc. (NYSE:WTRG) have received an average recommendation of “Hold” from the ten brokerages that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price objective among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $43.2857.

A number of research analysts recently commented on WTRG shares. Robert W. Baird downgraded Essential Utilities from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, October 27th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Essential Utilities in a research report on Monday, December 29th. UBS Group reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $45.00 target price (down from $46.00) on shares of Essential Utilities in a research note on Tuesday, October 28th. Barclays set a $38.00 price target on shares of Essential Utilities and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 17th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group cut shares of Essential Utilities from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and cut their price target for the company from $47.00 to $44.00 in a report on Tuesday, October 28th.

Essential Utilities Trading Down 1.1%

NYSE WTRG opened at $38.65 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $10.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.04 and a beta of 0.81. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $38.66 and its 200-day simple moving average is $38.96. The company has a current ratio of 0.60, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13. Essential Utilities has a 52 week low of $35.96 and a 52 week high of $42.37.

Essential Utilities Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 12th will be paid a $0.3426 dividend. This represents a $1.37 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.5%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 12th. Essential Utilities’s dividend payout ratio is 56.85%.

Institutional Trading of Essential Utilities

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Synergy Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in Essential Utilities by 351.4% in the third quarter. Synergy Asset Management LLC now owns 234,179 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,057,000 after acquiring an additional 182,301 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its holdings in shares of Essential Utilities by 25.5% in the 3rd quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 8,972,565 shares of the company’s stock worth $354,057,000 after purchasing an additional 1,822,306 shares during the last quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Essential Utilities by 16.4% in the 3rd quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 966,685 shares of the company’s stock worth $38,571,000 after purchasing an additional 135,899 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its position in Essential Utilities by 1.1% during the 3rd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 2,709,048 shares of the company’s stock valued at $108,091,000 after purchasing an additional 29,904 shares during the period. Finally, Brighton Jones LLC bought a new position in Essential Utilities during the 4th quarter worth $638,000. 74.78% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Essential Utilities

Essential Utilities, Inc, formerly known as Aqua America, is a publicly traded water and natural gas utility holding company. Through its regulated water and wastewater subsidiaries, the company provides essential water services to residential, commercial and industrial customers. In addition, Essential Utilities delivers natural gas distribution services in Pennsylvania through its Peoples Gas subsidiary, offering integrated utility solutions under a unified corporate framework.

The company traces its roots to the Philadelphia Suburban Water Company, founded in 1886 to serve growing communities outside Philadelphia.