CenterBook Partners LP Sells 12,861 Shares of Essential Utilities Inc. $WTRG

CenterBook Partners LP lessened its holdings in Essential Utilities Inc. (NYSE:WTRG) by 21.8% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 46,035 shares of the company’s stock after selling 12,861 shares during the quarter. CenterBook Partners LP’s holdings in Essential Utilities were worth $1,837,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of WTRG. American National Bank & Trust acquired a new position in Essential Utilities in the third quarter valued at approximately $27,000. SouthState Corp grew its holdings in Essential Utilities by 834.7% during the 2nd quarter. SouthState Corp now owns 701 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 626 shares during the period. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp raised its position in shares of Essential Utilities by 1,163.8% during the 3rd quarter. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp now owns 733 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 675 shares during the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Essential Utilities by 43.6% during the 3rd quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 1,114 shares of the company’s stock valued at $45,000 after acquiring an additional 338 shares during the last quarter. Finally, True Wealth Design LLC lifted its stake in shares of Essential Utilities by 141.2% in the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 1,213 shares of the company’s stock valued at $48,000 after purchasing an additional 710 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.78% of the company’s stock.

Essential Utilities Trading Up 0.4%

WTRG opened at $39.10 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.22 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a current ratio of 0.60, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13. Essential Utilities Inc. has a 12 month low of $35.35 and a 12 month high of $42.37. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $38.64 and its 200 day simple moving average is $38.96.

Essential Utilities Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 12th will be issued a $0.3426 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 12th. This represents a $1.37 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.5%. Essential Utilities’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 56.85%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently commented on WTRG. Jefferies Financial Group cut Essential Utilities from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $47.00 to $44.00 in a research note on Tuesday, October 28th. Barclays set a $38.00 target price on Essential Utilities and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 17th. UBS Group restated a “neutral” rating and set a $45.00 target price (down from $46.00) on shares of Essential Utilities in a research report on Tuesday, October 28th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Essential Utilities in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Robert W. Baird lowered shares of Essential Utilities from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, October 27th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $43.29.

Essential Utilities Profile

Essential Utilities, Inc, formerly known as Aqua America, is a publicly traded water and natural gas utility holding company. Through its regulated water and wastewater subsidiaries, the company provides essential water services to residential, commercial and industrial customers. In addition, Essential Utilities delivers natural gas distribution services in Pennsylvania through its Peoples Gas subsidiary, offering integrated utility solutions under a unified corporate framework.

The company traces its roots to the Philadelphia Suburban Water Company, founded in 1886 to serve growing communities outside Philadelphia.