Gitterman Wealth Management LLC Boosts Stake in Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG)

Gitterman Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG) by 6.6% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 6,864 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 423 shares during the period. Gitterman Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Essential Utilities were worth $256,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Choreo LLC lifted its stake in shares of Essential Utilities by 3.1% in the third quarter. Choreo LLC now owns 10,417 shares of the company’s stock worth $358,000 after buying an additional 311 shares in the last quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC raised its stake in Essential Utilities by 78.9% during the fourth quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 737 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 325 shares during the period. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich raised its stake in Essential Utilities by 3.1% during the third quarter. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich now owns 10,831 shares of the company’s stock worth $372,000 after purchasing an additional 328 shares during the period. Hamilton Point Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake in Essential Utilities by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Hamilton Point Investment Advisors LLC now owns 69,788 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,607,000 after purchasing an additional 342 shares during the period. Finally, Moors & Cabot Inc. raised its stake in Essential Utilities by 3.0% during the third quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. now owns 12,631 shares of the company’s stock worth $434,000 after purchasing an additional 368 shares during the period. 74.78% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Essential Utilities Trading Down 1.3 %

Shares of Essential Utilities stock traded down $0.48 on Friday, reaching $36.09. The company had a trading volume of 1,273,344 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,636,954. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $35.74 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $35.75. The firm has a market cap of $9.87 billion, a PE ratio of 19.40, a PEG ratio of 3.14 and a beta of 0.82. Essential Utilities, Inc. has a 52-week low of $32.07 and a 52-week high of $43.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a current ratio of 0.62.

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, February 23rd. The company reported $0.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.49 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $479.40 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $708.50 million. Essential Utilities had a net margin of 24.26% and a return on equity of 8.68%. The business’s revenue was down 32.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.44 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Essential Utilities, Inc. will post 2 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Essential Utilities Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, June 1st. Investors of record on Friday, May 10th will be issued a $0.3071 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 9th. This represents a $1.23 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.40%. This is a boost from Essential Utilities’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. Essential Utilities’s payout ratio is 66.13%.

Insider Activity at Essential Utilities

In related news, CAO Robert A. Rubin sold 5,565 shares of Essential Utilities stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $37.21, for a total value of $207,073.65. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 57,756 shares in the company, valued at $2,149,100.76. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.21% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Evercore ISI reduced their target price on shares of Essential Utilities from $51.00 to $42.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Essential Utilities currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $43.00.

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.