Diversified LLC Has $238,000 Stock Holdings in Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG)

Diversified LLC reduced its position in Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG) by 43.0% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 6,174 shares of the company’s stock after selling 4,651 shares during the period. Diversified LLC’s holdings in Essential Utilities were worth $238,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its position in Essential Utilities by 12.1% during the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 139,534 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,171,000 after purchasing an additional 15,009 shares during the period. Boston Trust Walden Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Essential Utilities by 350.3% during the 2nd quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp now owns 903,372 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,723,000 after buying an additional 702,760 shares during the period. ProShare Advisors LLC grew its stake in Essential Utilities by 2.5% in the 2nd quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 881,658 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,912,000 after buying an additional 21,804 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in Essential Utilities by 18.6% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,500,150 shares of the company’s stock valued at $56,002,000 after acquiring an additional 234,857 shares during the period. Finally, M&G Plc acquired a new stake in Essential Utilities during the second quarter worth approximately $482,000. 74.78% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on WTRG shares. Bank of America reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $45.00 target price on shares of Essential Utilities in a research note on Friday, September 20th. Jefferies Financial Group cut Essential Utilities from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $44.00 to $41.00 in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on shares of Essential Utilities from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of Essential Utilities from $45.00 to $43.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on shares of Essential Utilities from $42.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, August 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $44.00.

Essential Utilities Stock Performance

WTRG opened at $40.12 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 0.39 and a current ratio of 0.55. Essential Utilities, Inc. has a 52-week low of $33.57 and a 52-week high of $41.78. The firm has a market cap of $11.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.13 and a beta of 0.84. The business’s fifty day moving average is $39.05 and its 200-day moving average is $38.86.

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 4th. The company reported $0.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.24 by $0.01. Essential Utilities had a net margin of 27.84% and a return on equity of 7.89%. The firm had revenue of $435.30 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $416.95 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.30 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.8% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Essential Utilities, Inc. will post 2.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Essential Utilities Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 2nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 12th will be given a dividend of $0.3255 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 12th. This represents a $1.30 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.25%. Essential Utilities’s dividend payout ratio is currently 65.00%.

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.