Pathway Financial Advisers LLC Has $1.06 Million Stock Position in Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG)

Pathway Financial Advisers LLC boosted its stake in shares of Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG) by 2.2% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 28,473 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 605 shares during the period. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC’s holdings in Essential Utilities were worth $1,062,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Tradewinds Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Essential Utilities by 857.5% during the 1st quarter. Tradewinds Capital Management LLC now owns 699 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 626 shares during the last quarter. Voisard Asset Management Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Essential Utilities during the 2nd quarter worth about $37,000. Webster Bank N. A. acquired a new position in shares of Essential Utilities during the 1st quarter worth about $41,000. Riverview Trust Co bought a new stake in Essential Utilities during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $43,000. Finally, Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV grew its stake in shares of Essential Utilities by 112.8% in the first quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 1,513 shares of the company’s stock worth $56,000 after acquiring an additional 802 shares during the last quarter. 74.78% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Essential Utilities Price Performance

Shares of WTRG stock opened at $38.56 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $10.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.27, a PEG ratio of 3.37 and a beta of 0.85. Essential Utilities, Inc. has a 12 month low of $32.07 and a 12 month high of $41.78. The company has a quick ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 0.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $39.39 and a 200 day moving average price of $38.05.

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 5th. The company reported $0.28 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.30 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $434.40 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $442.76 million. Essential Utilities had a return on equity of 8.16% and a net margin of 28.74%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down .5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.34 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Essential Utilities, Inc. will post 1.95 EPS for the current year.

Essential Utilities Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 3rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 12th were issued a dividend of $0.3255 per share. This represents a $1.30 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.38%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 12th. This is a boost from Essential Utilities’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. Essential Utilities’s payout ratio is 61.61%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Bank of America reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $45.00 target price on shares of Essential Utilities in a research note on Friday, September 20th. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on shares of Essential Utilities from $43.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on Essential Utilities from $42.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Essential Utilities from $42.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $45.00.

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.