Hamilton Point Investment Advisors LLC Boosts Stock Holdings in Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG)

Hamilton Point Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG) by 1.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 131,271 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 1,753 shares during the period. Hamilton Point Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in Essential Utilities were worth $4,768,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of WTRG. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Essential Utilities by 4.4% in the second quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 95,426 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,562,000 after acquiring an additional 3,987 shares during the period. Squarepoint Ops LLC purchased a new stake in Essential Utilities during the 2nd quarter worth about $1,016,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. boosted its stake in Essential Utilities by 134.8% in the 2nd quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 7,560 shares of the company’s stock worth $282,000 after purchasing an additional 4,340 shares during the period. EP Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Essential Utilities by 11.7% during the 2nd quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 9,580 shares of the company’s stock valued at $358,000 after buying an additional 1,005 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cetera Investment Advisers increased its position in shares of Essential Utilities by 5.8% during the second quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 51,561 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,925,000 after buying an additional 2,811 shares during the period. 74.78% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Essential Utilities Stock Up 0.9 %

Shares of NYSE:WTRG opened at $35.48 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $36.80 and a 200 day moving average of $38.49. Essential Utilities, Inc. has a 52-week low of $33.18 and a 52-week high of $41.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 0.39 and a current ratio of 0.55. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.74 billion, a PE ratio of 17.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 0.86.

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 4th. The company reported $0.25 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.24 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $435.30 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $416.95 million. Essential Utilities had a return on equity of 7.89% and a net margin of 27.84%. The company’s revenue was up 5.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.30 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Essential Utilities, Inc. will post 1.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Essential Utilities Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 3rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 10th will be issued a $0.3255 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 10th. This represents a $1.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.67%. Essential Utilities’s payout ratio is 65.00%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WTRG has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company lowered shares of Essential Utilities from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and cut their price objective for the company from $43.00 to $39.00 in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Essential Utilities from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $41.00 price target for the company in a research report on Tuesday. UBS Group lowered their price objective on Essential Utilities from $45.00 to $42.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on Essential Utilities from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $43.00.

Essential Utilities 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.