ABN Amro Investment Solutions Cuts Holdings in Essential Utilities Inc. $WTRG

ABN Amro Investment Solutions cut its holdings in Essential Utilities Inc. (NYSE:WTRG) by 21.2% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 101,030 shares of the company’s stock after selling 27,236 shares during the quarter. ABN Amro Investment Solutions’ holdings in Essential Utilities were worth $4,068,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Pekao Towarzystwo Funduszy Inwestycyjnych S.A. bought a new position in Essential Utilities in the fourth quarter worth about $3,547,000. A. D. Beadell Investment Counsel Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Essential Utilities in the 4th quarter valued at about $1,432,000. Perigon Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Essential Utilities in the 4th quarter worth approximately $958,000. Brighton Jones LLC purchased a new position in shares of Essential Utilities in the 4th quarter worth approximately $638,000. Finally, Versor Investments LP bought a new position in shares of Essential Utilities during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,430,000. 74.78% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WTRG has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Essential Utilities in a research note on Friday, May 22nd. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Essential Utilities from $43.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 2nd. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Essential Utilities to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, July 4th. Finally, Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Essential Utilities from $38.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $43.80.

Essential Utilities Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE WTRG opened at $39.62 on Friday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $37.83 and its 200 day moving average price is $38.81. Essential Utilities Inc. has a 1 year low of $36.10 and a 1 year high of $42.37. The company has a market capitalization of $11.24 billion, a PE ratio of 20.11 and a beta of 0.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a current ratio of 0.95.

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $0.83 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.90 by ($0.07). Essential Utilities had a net margin of 21.82% and a return on equity of 8.34%. The firm had revenue of $861.76 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $782.90 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.03 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 10.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that Essential Utilities Inc. will post 2.21 earnings per share for the current year.

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.