Q2 EPS Forecast for Essential Utilities Reduced by Analyst

Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG) – Analysts at Zacks Research dropped their Q2 2025 earnings estimates for Essential Utilities in a research report issued on Monday, November 25th. Zacks Research analyst R. Department now anticipates that the company will post earnings per share of $0.35 for the quarter, down from their previous estimate of $0.38. The consensus estimate for Essential Utilities’ current full-year earnings is $2.01 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Essential Utilities’ Q4 2025 earnings at $0.63 EPS and Q3 2026 earnings at $0.37 EPS.

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 4th. The company reported $0.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $416.95 million. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.30 earnings per share. Essential Utilities’s revenue was up 5.8% compared to the same quarter last year.

Other research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. Evercore ISI lifted 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. Bank of America reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $45.00 price target on shares of Essential Utilities in a research note on Friday, September 20th. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on shares of Essential Utilities from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Jefferies Financial Group downgraded shares of Essential Utilities from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $44.00 to $41.00 in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of Essential Utilities from $45.00 to $43.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Essential Utilities currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $44.00.

Essential Utilities Price Performance

Shares of WTRG opened at $40.05 on Wednesday. Essential Utilities has a 1-year low of $33.57 and a 1-year high of $41.78. The stock has a market cap of $11.00 billion, a PE ratio of 20.02, a P/E/G ratio of 3.17 and a beta of 0.84. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $39.06 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $38.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 0.55 and a quick ratio of 0.39.

Institutional Trading of Essential Utilities

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Friedenthal Financial purchased a new stake in Essential Utilities in the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new position in Essential Utilities in the 3rd quarter valued at $26,000. Darwin Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Essential Utilities in the 3rd quarter valued at $28,000. First Horizon Advisors Inc. increased its stake in Essential Utilities by 61.4% in the 3rd quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 773 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 294 shares during the period. Finally, Voisard Asset Management Group Inc. acquired a new position in Essential Utilities in the 2nd quarter valued at $37,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.78% of the company’s stock.

Essential Utilities Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 2nd. Stockholders 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 dividend yield of 3.25%. Essential Utilities’s dividend payout ratio is presently 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.