Empower Advisory Group LLC Purchases 74,563 Shares of Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG)

Empower Advisory Group LLC raised its position in Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG) by 4.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 1,660,038 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 74,563 shares during the quarter. Empower Advisory Group LLC owned approximately 0.60% of Essential Utilities worth $60,293,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. V Square Quantitative Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Essential Utilities by 10.6% during the 3rd quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 3,477 shares of the company’s stock worth $134,000 after acquiring an additional 333 shares during the last quarter. Toth Financial Advisory Corp lifted its position in Essential Utilities by 44.4% during the third quarter. Toth Financial Advisory Corp now owns 73,394 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,831,000 after purchasing an additional 22,560 shares in the last quarter. Cetera Trust Company N.A grew its holdings in Essential Utilities by 12.6% during the third quarter. Cetera Trust Company N.A now owns 4,465 shares of the company’s stock valued at $172,000 after purchasing an additional 500 shares during the period. Eastern Bank bought a new stake in Essential Utilities during the third quarter valued at about $1,901,000. Finally, Blossom Wealth Management increased its position in Essential Utilities by 3.2% in the third quarter. Blossom Wealth Management now owns 14,780 shares of the company’s stock worth $570,000 after buying an additional 465 shares in the last quarter. 74.78% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Robert W. Baird increased their target price 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. UBS Group reduced their price objective on shares of Essential Utilities from $45.00 to $42.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Essential Utilities from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $41.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered Essential Utilities from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and cut their price target for the stock from $43.00 to $39.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Essential Utilities currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $43.00.

Essential Utilities Trading Down 1.7 %

NYSE:WTRG opened at $35.21 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $35.85 and a 200-day simple moving average of $38.06. Essential Utilities, Inc. has a one year low of $33.18 and a one year high of $41.78. The firm has a market cap of $9.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.60, a P/E/G ratio of 2.53 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 Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 3rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 10th will be issued a $0.3255 dividend. This represents a $1.30 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.70%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 10th. Essential Utilities’s dividend payout ratio is currently 65.00%.

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.