Essential Utilities Inc. $WTRG Position Increased by Vise Technologies Inc.

Vise Technologies Inc. grew its stake in Essential Utilities Inc. (NYSE:WTRG) by 68.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 47,922 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 19,466 shares during the period. Vise Technologies Inc.’s holdings in Essential Utilities were worth $1,878,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in WTRG. Root Financial Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Essential Utilities during the third quarter worth about $27,000. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. bought a new position in Essential Utilities during the second quarter valued at about $33,000. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Essential Utilities in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Orion Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Essential Utilities in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $43,000. Finally, Essential Partners LLC raised its holdings in Essential Utilities by 29.9% in the 1st quarter. Essential Partners LLC now owns 1,234 shares of the company’s stock valued at $50,000 after acquiring an additional 284 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.78% of the company’s stock.

Essential Utilities Stock Up 2.2%

Shares of WTRG opened at $46.12 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $13.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.40 and a beta of 0.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a current ratio of 0.40. Essential Utilities Inc. has a 52 week low of $36.10 and a 52 week high of $46.36. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $41.08 and its 200 day simple moving average is $39.53.

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 3rd. The company reported $0.38 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.33 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $508.26 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $450.44 million. Essential Utilities had a net margin of 21.79% and a return on equity of 8.36%. The firm’s revenue was up 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.33 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Essential Utilities Inc. will post 2.21 earnings per share for the current year.

Essential Utilities Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 1st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 10th will be paid a $0.3606 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 10th. This represents a $1.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.1%. Essential Utilities’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 72.36%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently commented on WTRG. UBS Group decreased their price target on shares of Essential Utilities from $49.00 to $47.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 16th. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Essential Utilities from $38.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised Essential Utilities from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Thursday, October 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Essential Utilities has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $43.00.

Essential Utilities Profile

Essential Utilities, Inc is a regulated utility company that provides water, wastewater and natural gas services to residential, commercial, industrial and municipal customers. Through its Aqua and Peoples operations, the company owns and operates water and wastewater systems, natural gas distribution networks and related infrastructure. Its services include the treatment and delivery of drinking water, collection and treatment of wastewater, and the distribution of natural gas.

The company serves customers across several U.S.