Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG) Sets New 52-Week High – Should You Buy?

Essential Utilities Inc. (NYSE:WTRG)’s stock price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as $41.70 and last traded at $41.26, with a volume of 283915 shares. The stock had previously closed at $41.34.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WTRG has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on Essential Utilities from $43.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 10th. UBS Group lifted their price target on Essential Utilities from $42.00 to $47.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 15th. Wall Street Zen raised Essential Utilities from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, October 11th. Zacks Research downgraded Essential Utilities from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, August 25th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Essential Utilities in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $45.17.

Essential Utilities Price Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $11.58 billion, a PE ratio of 17.72, a PEG ratio of 4.29 and a beta of 0.82. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $39.04 and a 200 day moving average price of $38.65. The company has a quick ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13.

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 31st. The company reported $0.38 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.29 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $514.91 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $462.70 million. Essential Utilities had a return on equity of 10.10% and a net margin of 27.62%.The business’s revenue was up 18.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.28 earnings per share. Essential Utilities has set its FY 2025 guidance at 2.070-2.110 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Essential Utilities Inc. will post 1.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Essential Utilities Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 2nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 12th were given a $0.3426 dividend. This represents a $1.37 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.3%. This is a boost from Essential Utilities’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.33. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 12th. Essential Utilities’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 58.80%.

Institutional Trading of Essential Utilities

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in WTRG. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Essential Utilities during the second quarter worth approximately $102,347,000. Maple Brown Abbott Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Essential Utilities during the first quarter worth approximately $94,251,000. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. increased its position in shares of Essential Utilities by 1,572.4% during the second quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 1,271,201 shares of the company’s stock worth $47,212,000 after purchasing an additional 1,195,189 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Essential Utilities by 2.3% during the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 30,407,634 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,129,340,000 after purchasing an additional 693,988 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Essential Utilities during the first quarter worth approximately $25,526,000. 74.78% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.