Zacks Research Issues Pessimistic Forecast for WTRG Earnings

Essential Utilities Inc. (NYSE:WTRG) – Zacks Research lowered their Q4 2025 EPS estimates for Essential Utilities in a report issued on Tuesday, November 25th. Zacks Research analyst Team now expects that the company will post earnings of $0.36 per share for the quarter, down from their previous forecast of $0.43. Zacks Research currently has a “Strong-Buy” rating on the stock. The consensus estimate for Essential Utilities’ current full-year earnings is $1.99 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Essential Utilities’ Q1 2026 earnings at $1.01 EPS, Q2 2026 earnings at $0.33 EPS, Q4 2026 earnings at $0.55 EPS, Q1 2027 earnings at $1.02 EPS, Q2 2027 earnings at $0.39 EPS and Q3 2027 earnings at $0.38 EPS.

Several other brokerages have also issued reports on WTRG. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Essential Utilities in a research note on Tuesday. Robert W. Baird raised their target price on shares of Essential Utilities from $46.00 to $47.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, August 4th. Janney Montgomery Scott lowered shares of Essential Utilities from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, October 27th. Wall Street Zen raised Essential Utilities from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, October 11th. Finally, Barclays raised their price objective on Essential Utilities from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, October 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Essential Utilities currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $44.57.

Essential Utilities Stock Down 0.5%

WTRG stock opened at $39.31 on Thursday. Essential Utilities has a fifty-two week low of $33.18 and a fifty-two week high of $42.37. The company has a market capitalization of $11.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.11 and a beta of 0.84. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $39.57 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $38.60. 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 posted its earnings results 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. The firm had revenue of $476.97 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $472.40 million. Essential Utilities had a return on equity of 10.10% and a net margin of 27.62%.The business’s revenue was up 9.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.25 earnings per share.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Essential Utilities

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC raised its position in Essential Utilities by 3.7% in the third quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 21,122 shares of the company’s stock worth $843,000 after acquiring an additional 758 shares during the period. CIBC Bancorp USA Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Essential Utilities in the 3rd quarter worth $401,000. Caerus Investment Advisors LLC bought a new position in Essential Utilities in the 3rd quarter worth $203,000. Danske Bank A S purchased a new position in Essential Utilities during the third quarter valued at $3,723,000. Finally, Advisory Services Network LLC purchased a new position in Essential Utilities during the third quarter valued at $157,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.78% of the company’s stock.

Essential Utilities Announces Dividend

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

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.