New York Life Investment Management LLC Decreases Stake in Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG)

New York Life Investment Management LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG) by 1.6% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 30,079 shares of the company’s stock after selling 502 shares during the quarter. New York Life Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Essential Utilities were worth $1,123,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of WTRG. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV raised its holdings in Essential Utilities by 604.0% in the 4th quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 711 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 610 shares during the last quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC grew its position in shares of Essential Utilities by 78.9% in the fourth quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 737 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 325 shares in the last quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Essential Utilities by 4,210.0% in the fourth quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. now owns 862 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 842 shares during the last quarter. Resources Management Corp CT ADV lifted its position in Essential Utilities by 250.0% during the third quarter. Resources Management Corp CT ADV now owns 1,050 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 750 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Orion Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Essential Utilities during the third quarter worth $39,000. 74.78% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WTRG has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Robert W. Baird cut their target price on Essential Utilities from $44.00 to $43.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday. Evercore ISI reduced their target price on shares of Essential Utilities from $51.00 to $42.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 4th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $43.00.

Insider Activity at Essential Utilities

In other Essential Utilities news, CAO Robert A. Rubin sold 2,023 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.56, for a total transaction of $73,960.88. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 13,358 shares in the company, valued at $488,368.48. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, CAO Robert A. Rubin sold 2,023 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.56, for a total value of $73,960.88. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 13,358 shares in the company, valued at approximately $488,368.48. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CAO Robert A. Rubin sold 5,565 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $37.21, for a total value of $207,073.65. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 57,756 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,149,100.76. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.21% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Essential Utilities Stock Performance

Shares of Essential Utilities stock opened at $38.67 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $10.58 billion, a PE ratio of 18.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.29 and a beta of 0.80. The company has a quick ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 0.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13. Essential Utilities, Inc. has a 52 week low of $32.07 and a 52 week high of $43.74. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $36.02 and its 200-day simple moving average is $35.97.

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG) last posted its earnings results on Friday, February 23rd. The company reported $0.50 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.49 by $0.01. Essential Utilities had a net margin of 29.52% and a return on equity of 8.62%. The company had revenue of $479.40 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $708.50 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.44 earnings per share. Essential Utilities’s revenue for the quarter was down 32.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts forecast that Essential Utilities, Inc. will post 2 earnings per share for the current year.

Essential Utilities Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, June 1st. Investors of record on Friday, May 10th will be given a dividend of $0.3071 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 9th. This represents a $1.23 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.18%. This is a boost from Essential Utilities’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. Essential Utilities’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 58.29%.

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.