Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG) Raised to “Buy” at Jefferies Financial Group

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG) was upgraded by Jefferies Financial Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. The brokerage presently has a $41.00 target price on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group’s price objective would suggest a potential upside of 16.49% from the stock’s previous close.

Other research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on shares of Essential Utilities from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. Wells Fargo & Company downgraded shares of Essential Utilities from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and dropped their target price for the company from $43.00 to $39.00 in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, UBS Group reduced their price target on shares of Essential Utilities from $45.00 to $42.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $43.00.

Essential Utilities Price Performance

NYSE:WTRG opened at $35.20 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $36.96 and a 200 day moving average price of $38.53. The stock has a market cap of $9.66 billion, a PE ratio of 17.60, a P/E/G ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 0.86. 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 has a one year low of $33.18 and a one year high of $41.78.

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 4th. The company reported $0.25 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.24 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $435.30 million during 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%. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.30 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that Essential Utilities will post 1.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Essential Utilities

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in Essential Utilities by 4.4% during the second quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 95,426 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,562,000 after purchasing an additional 3,987 shares during the last quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board raised its holdings in shares of Essential Utilities by 44.1% during the second quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 34,080 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,272,000 after purchasing an additional 10,437 shares during the period. Squarepoint Ops LLC bought a new position in shares of Essential Utilities in the 2nd quarter worth about $1,016,000. MBB Public Markets I LLC acquired a new position in shares of Essential Utilities in the 2nd quarter valued at about $708,000. Finally, Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. grew its position in shares of Essential Utilities by 134.8% during the 2nd quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 7,560 shares of the company’s stock valued at $282,000 after buying an additional 4,340 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.78% of the company’s stock.

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.