Swiss National Bank Reduces Stock Holdings in Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG)

Swiss National Bank lowered its position in Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG) by 2.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 782,800 shares of the company’s stock after selling 22,500 shares during the quarter. Swiss National Bank owned about 0.29% of Essential Utilities worth $29,238,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of WTRG. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV lifted its position in shares of Essential Utilities by 604.0% during the fourth quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 711 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 610 shares in the last quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC raised its holdings in Essential Utilities by 78.9% in the fourth quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 737 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 325 shares in the last quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. raised its holdings in Essential Utilities by 4,210.0% in the fourth quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. now owns 862 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 842 shares in the last quarter. Resources Management Corp CT ADV raised its holdings in Essential Utilities by 250.0% in the third quarter. Resources Management Corp CT ADV now owns 1,050 shares of the company’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 750 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Orion Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Essential Utilities in the third quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.78% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently weighed in on WTRG shares. 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 report on Monday, March 4th. Robert W. Baird reduced their target price on shares of Essential Utilities from $44.00 to $43.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $43.00.

Insider Transactions at Essential Utilities

In other news, CAO Robert A. Rubin sold 2,023 shares of Essential Utilities stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.56, for a total transaction of $73,960.88. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 13,358 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $488,368.48. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In related news, CAO Robert A. Rubin sold 5,565 shares of Essential Utilities stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $37.21, for a total transaction of $207,073.65. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 57,756 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,149,100.76. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CAO Robert A. Rubin sold 2,023 shares of Essential Utilities stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.56, for a total value of $73,960.88. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 13,358 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $488,368.48. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.21% of the company’s stock.

Essential Utilities Stock Performance

NYSE:WTRG opened at $38.69 on Thursday. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $36.02 and its 200 day moving average price is $35.97. Essential Utilities, Inc. has a 1-year low of $32.07 and a 1-year high of $43.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 0.62 and a quick ratio of 0.48. The firm has a market cap of $10.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.29 and a beta of 0.80.

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG) last released its earnings results on Friday, February 23rd. The company reported $0.50 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.49 by $0.01. Essential Utilities had a return on equity of 8.62% and a net margin of 29.52%. The company had revenue of $479.40 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $708.50 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.44 earnings per share. Essential Utilities’s quarterly revenue was down 32.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Essential Utilities, Inc. will post 2 EPS for the current year.

Essential Utilities Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.3071 per share. This represents a $1.23 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.17%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 9th. This is an increase from Essential Utilities’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. Essential Utilities’s payout ratio is 58.29%.

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.