Inspire Advisors LLC Invests $647,000 in Essential Utilities Inc. $WTRG

Inspire Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Essential Utilities Inc. (NYSE:WTRG) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 17,430 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $647,000.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of WTRG. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Essential Utilities by 24.7% during the first quarter. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC now owns 1,531 shares of the company’s stock worth $61,000 after purchasing an additional 303 shares in the last quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC grew its stake in Essential Utilities by 27.6% during the 1st quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC now owns 1,406 shares of the company’s stock worth $56,000 after buying an additional 304 shares during the last quarter. Nissay Asset Management Corp Japan ADV increased its position in Essential Utilities by 1.0% during the 1st quarter. Nissay Asset Management Corp Japan ADV now owns 32,175 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,272,000 after buying an additional 307 shares in the last quarter. Wealthspire Advisors LLC raised its stake in Essential Utilities by 2.0% in the first quarter. Wealthspire Advisors LLC now owns 16,322 shares of the company’s stock valued at $645,000 after buying an additional 327 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fifth Third Bancorp raised its stake in Essential Utilities by 14.3% in the second quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 2,969 shares of the company’s stock valued at $110,000 after buying an additional 371 shares during the last quarter. 74.78% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Essential Utilities Price Performance

Shares of WTRG opened at $39.16 on Wednesday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $39.39 and its two-hundred day moving average is $38.66. The company has a market capitalization of $11.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.81, a P/E/G ratio of 3.11 and a beta of 0.84. Essential Utilities Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $33.18 and a fifty-two week high of $42.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a current ratio of 0.73.

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 5th. The company reported $0.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.27 by $0.06. Essential Utilities had a return on equity of 10.10% and a net margin of 27.62%.The business had revenue of $476.97 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $472.40 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.25 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.6% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Essential Utilities Inc. will post 1.99 earnings per share for the current year.

Essential Utilities Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 12th will be given a $0.3426 dividend. This represents a $1.37 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.5%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 12th. Essential Utilities’s dividend payout ratio is currently 56.85%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WTRG has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Baird R W downgraded shares of Essential Utilities from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, October 27th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Essential Utilities from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, October 11th. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on shares of Essential Utilities from $46.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, August 4th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Essential Utilities from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 21st. Finally, UBS Group reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $45.00 target price (down from $46.00) on shares of Essential Utilities in a research report on Tuesday, October 28th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $44.57.

Essential Utilities 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.