UMB Bank n.a. Grows Stock Holdings in Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG)

UMB Bank n.a. increased its stake in shares of Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG) by 465.4% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,612 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,150 shares during the period. UMB Bank n.a.’s holdings in Essential Utilities were worth $103,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. VSM Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new position in shares of Essential Utilities during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. American National Bank & Trust purchased a new position in shares of Essential Utilities during the first quarter valued at approximately $35,000. IFP Advisors Inc raised its holdings in shares of Essential Utilities by 75.0% during the fourth quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 1,104 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 473 shares during the last quarter. Orion Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Essential Utilities during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $41,000. Finally, New Age Alpha Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Essential Utilities during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $45,000. 74.78% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Robert W. Baird decreased their price objective on shares of Essential Utilities from $47.00 to $46.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Essential Utilities from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, April 20th. Evercore ISI boosted their target price on shares of Essential Utilities from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Essential Utilities from $39.00 to $41.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $43.50.

Essential Utilities Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE WTRG opened at $38.35 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $39.21 and a 200 day moving average of $37.90. The company has a current ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 0.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 0.81. Essential Utilities, Inc. has a 12-month low of $33.18 and a 12-month high of $41.78.

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 12th. The company reported $1.03 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.80 by $0.23. The business had revenue of $783.63 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $713.80 million. Essential Utilities had a net margin of 27.84% and a return on equity of 7.89%. The company’s revenue was up 28.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.97 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that Essential Utilities, Inc. will post 1.99 earnings per share for the current year.

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.