Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG) Shares Sold by New York State Common Retirement Fund

New York State Common Retirement Fund cut its stake in shares of Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG) by 5.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 413,348 shares of the company’s stock after selling 22,657 shares during the quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund owned about 0.15% of Essential Utilities worth $15,439,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc acquired a new position in Essential Utilities during the fourth quarter worth about $52,964,000. Nuance Investments LLC purchased a new position in Essential Utilities in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $21,570,000. Beck Bode LLC purchased a new position in Essential Utilities in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $8,028,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its holdings in Essential Utilities by 2,242.1% during the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 238,027 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,171,000 after purchasing an additional 227,864 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc boosted its position in Essential Utilities by 6.1% during the third quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 2,918,202 shares of the company’s stock worth $100,182,000 after purchasing an additional 166,891 shares in the last quarter. 74.78% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CAO Robert A. Rubin sold 5,565 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $37.21, for a total value of $207,073.65. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 57,756 shares in the company, valued at $2,149,100.76. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.21% of the company’s stock.

Essential Utilities Stock Performance

NYSE WTRG opened at $36.46 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 0.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16. The stock has a market cap of $9.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.15 and a beta of 0.82. Essential Utilities, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $32.07 and a fifty-two week high of $43.74. The business has a fifty day moving average of $35.75 and a 200-day moving average of $35.79.

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, February 23rd. The company reported $0.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.49 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $479.40 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $708.50 million. Essential Utilities had a net margin of 24.26% and a return on equity of 8.68%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 32.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.44 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Essential Utilities, Inc. will post 2 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Essential Utilities Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 10th will be issued a $0.3071 dividend. 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. This represents a $1.23 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.37%. Essential Utilities’s payout ratio is 66.13%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, Evercore ISI cut their price target on Essential Utilities from $51.00 to $42.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $43.00.

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.