Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. Acquires 149,162 Shares of Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG)

Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG) by 8.7% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,871,932 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 149,162 shares during the quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. owned approximately 0.68% of Essential Utilities worth $72,200,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. CIBC Asset Management Inc lifted its holdings in shares of Essential Utilities by 1.8% during the third quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 14,243 shares of the company’s stock worth $549,000 after purchasing an additional 250 shares during the period. First Horizon Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in Essential Utilities by 61.4% during the 3rd quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 773 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 294 shares during the period. Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Essential Utilities by 4.5% in the 2nd quarter. Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 6,947 shares of the company’s stock valued at $259,000 after buying an additional 297 shares during the last quarter. Tompkins Financial Corp increased its stake in shares of Essential Utilities by 21.7% in the third quarter. Tompkins Financial Corp now owns 1,685 shares of the company’s stock valued at $65,000 after buying an additional 300 shares during the period. Finally, V Square Quantitative Management LLC raised its position in shares of Essential Utilities by 10.6% during the third quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 3,477 shares of the company’s stock worth $134,000 after acquiring an additional 333 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 74.78% of the company’s stock.

Essential Utilities Stock Up 0.6 %

Shares of NYSE WTRG opened at $40.28 on Friday. 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 cap of $11.06 billion, a PE ratio of 20.14, a P/E/G ratio of 3.17 and a beta of 0.84. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $39.13 and its 200 day simple moving average is $38.88. Essential Utilities, Inc. has a 12-month low of $33.57 and a 12-month high of $41.78.

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG) last released its quarterly earnings data 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. Essential Utilities had a net margin of 27.84% and a return on equity of 7.89%. The company had revenue of $435.30 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $416.95 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.30 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 5.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Essential Utilities, Inc. will post 2.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Essential Utilities Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 2nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 12th will be issued a dividend of $0.3255 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 12th. This represents a $1.30 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.23%. Essential Utilities’s dividend payout ratio is 65.00%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently commented on the company. Evercore ISI upped their target price on Essential Utilities from $42.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on shares of Essential Utilities from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Jefferies Financial Group downgraded shares of Essential Utilities from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $44.00 to $41.00 in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of Essential Utilities from $45.00 to $43.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, Bank of America reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $45.00 price target on shares of Essential Utilities in a report on Friday, September 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $44.00.

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.