California Public Employees Retirement System lessened its holdings in shares of Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG – Get Rating) by 2.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 513,351 shares of the company’s stock after selling 13,676 shares during the quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System owned 0.20% of Essential Utilities worth $24,502,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.
Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Essential Utilities by 4.1% during the fourth quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 5,987 shares of the company’s stock worth $286,000 after acquiring an additional 238 shares during the period. United Capital Financial Advisers LLC boosted its position in Essential Utilities by 1.7% during the first quarter. United Capital Financial Advisers LLC now owns 14,796 shares of the company’s stock valued at $757,000 after acquiring an additional 248 shares during the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans boosted its position in shares of Essential Utilities by 0.5% during the 2nd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 65,412 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,999,000 after purchasing an additional 305 shares in the last quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC raised its holdings in shares of Essential Utilities by 2.8% in the 4th quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 12,352 shares of the company’s stock worth $590,000 after acquiring an additional 335 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Captrust Financial Advisors increased its stake in Essential Utilities by 4.1% in the 3rd quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 8,420 shares of the company’s stock valued at $348,000 after buying an additional 335 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 69.96% of the company’s stock.
Essential Utilities Stock Up 1.3 %
Shares of Essential Utilities stock opened at $42.97 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a current ratio of 0.64. Essential Utilities, Inc. has a 52-week low of $38.50 and a 52-week high of $52.42. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.36 billion, a PE ratio of 24.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.84 and a beta of 0.79. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $42.92 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $45.35.
Essential Utilities Announces Dividend
The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 12th will be paid a dividend of $0.287 per share. This represents a $1.15 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.67%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 11th. Essential Utilities’s payout ratio is 64.97%.
Wall Street Analyst Weigh In
Several research analysts have commented on WTRG shares. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Essential Utilities from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Thursday, May 4th. UBS Group raised shares of Essential Utilities from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $54.00 to $55.00 in a research note on Monday, February 6th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $54.00 target price on shares of Essential Utilities in a research note on Thursday, March 16th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of Essential Utilities from $53.00 to $52.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 28th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $52.38.
Insider Buying and Selling at Essential Utilities
In other news, CEO Chris Franklin bought 37,245 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 8th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $40.70 per share, for a total transaction of $1,515,871.50. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer now directly owns 37,245 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,515,871.50. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.
Essential Utilities Profile
Essential Utilities, Inc is a holding company, which engages in providing water, wastewater and natural gas services through its subsidiaries. It operates through the Regulated Water and Regulated Natural Gas segments. The Regulated Water segment includes water and wastewater regulated utility companies.
Read More
- Get a free copy of the StockNews.com research report on Essential Utilities (WTRG)
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