Kennedy Capital Management LLC Raises Stake in Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG)

Kennedy Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG) by 5.9% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 80,749 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 4,499 shares during the period. Kennedy Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Essential Utilities were worth $2,992,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Lindbrook Capital LLC increased its position in shares of Essential Utilities by 78.9% during the fourth quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 737 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 325 shares during the period. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC increased its holdings in Essential Utilities by 52.9% during the 4th quarter. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC now owns 977 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 338 shares during the period. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. raised its position in Essential Utilities by 5.5% during the 1st quarter. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. now owns 6,506 shares of the company’s stock valued at $241,000 after purchasing an additional 339 shares in the last quarter. Hamilton Point Investment Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Essential Utilities by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Hamilton Point Investment Advisors LLC now owns 69,788 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,607,000 after buying an additional 342 shares during the period. Finally, Fifth Third Bancorp grew its position in shares of Essential Utilities by 9.3% during the 1st quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 4,258 shares of the company’s stock worth $158,000 after buying an additional 364 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.78% of the company’s stock.

Essential Utilities Stock Up 0.1 %

Shares of WTRG traded up $0.03 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $40.72. The company had a trading volume of 206,629 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,571,079. Essential Utilities, Inc. has a one year low of $32.07 and a one year high of $42.58. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $38.17 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $37.03. The company has a market capitalization of $11.14 billion, a PE ratio of 19.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.57 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a current ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 0.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13.

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The company reported $0.73 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.76 by ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $612.07 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $747.44 million. Essential Utilities had a net margin of 29.52% and a return on equity of 8.62%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Essential Utilities, Inc. will post 1.97 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, Robert W. Baird lowered their price objective on shares of Essential Utilities from $44.00 to $43.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, May 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Essential Utilities presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $43.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at Essential Utilities

In related news, CAO Robert A. Rubin sold 2,342 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $37.43, for a total value of $87,661.06. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 53,391 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,998,425.13. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.21% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.