Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG) Shares Sold by Arcadia Investment Management Corp MI

Arcadia Investment Management Corp MI lowered its holdings in shares of Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG) by 3.2% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 76,545 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,560 shares during the period. Arcadia Investment Management Corp MI’s holdings in Essential Utilities were worth $2,857,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of WTRG. Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Essential Utilities by 4.5% in the 2nd quarter. Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 6,947 shares of the company’s stock worth $259,000 after acquiring an additional 297 shares during the period. Sanibel Captiva Trust Company Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Essential Utilities by 5.4% in the 1st quarter. Sanibel Captiva Trust Company Inc. now owns 6,491 shares of the company’s stock worth $240,000 after acquiring an additional 334 shares during the period. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Essential Utilities by 52.9% in the 4th quarter. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC now owns 977 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 338 shares during the period. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Essential Utilities by 5.5% in the 1st quarter. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. now owns 6,506 shares of the company’s stock worth $241,000 after acquiring an additional 339 shares during the period. Finally, Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lifted its stake in shares of Essential Utilities by 8.7% in the 2nd quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 4,416 shares of the company’s stock worth $165,000 after acquiring an additional 352 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.78% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently commented on WTRG. Evercore ISI raised their target price on shares of Essential Utilities from $42.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Essential Utilities from $42.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Finally, Robert W. Baird increased their price target on shares of Essential Utilities from $43.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Essential Utilities has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $44.40.

Insider Buying and Selling at Essential Utilities

In other news, CAO Robert A. Rubin sold 2,342 shares of Essential Utilities stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $37.43, for a total transaction of $87,661.06. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 53,391 shares in the company, valued at $1,998,425.13. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.21% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Essential Utilities Price Performance

Shares of WTRG traded down $0.07 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $39.16. The company had a trading volume of 618,036 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,538,452. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $39.42 and a 200-day simple moving average of $37.63. The company has a current ratio of 0.58, a quick ratio of 0.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14. The company has a market capitalization of $10.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.59, a PEG ratio of 3.50 and a beta of 0.85. Essential Utilities, Inc. has a 12-month low of $32.07 and a 12-month high of $41.78.

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG) last posted its earnings results on Monday, August 5th. The company reported $0.28 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.30 by ($0.02). Essential Utilities had a net margin of 28.74% and a return on equity of 8.16%. The business had revenue of $434.40 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $442.76 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.34 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was down .5% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that Essential Utilities, Inc. will post 1.94 earnings per share for the current year.

Essential Utilities Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 3rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 12th were issued a dividend of $0.3255 per share. This is an increase from Essential Utilities’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. This represents a $1.30 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.32%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 12th. Essential Utilities’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 61.61%.

Essential Utilities 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.