EagleClaw Capital Managment LLC Has $426,000 Stake in Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG)

EagleClaw Capital Managment LLC raised its stake in shares of Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG) by 15.7% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 11,052 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,500 shares during the quarter. EagleClaw Capital Managment LLC’s holdings in Essential Utilities were worth $426,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Friedenthal Financial acquired a new position in Essential Utilities during the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Darwin Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Essential Utilities in the 3rd quarter worth $28,000. First Horizon Advisors Inc. increased its stake in Essential Utilities by 61.4% during the third quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 773 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 294 shares during the period. Voisard Asset Management Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Essential Utilities during the second quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its position in Essential Utilities by 81.2% in the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,149 shares of the company’s stock worth $44,000 after purchasing an additional 515 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.78% of the company’s stock.

Essential Utilities Price Performance

WTRG stock traded down $0.01 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $38.94. 42,686 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,518,511. The company has a quick ratio of 0.39, a current ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17. The company has a market cap of $10.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.48, a PEG ratio of 3.05 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $39.01 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $38.83. Essential Utilities, Inc. has a 1-year low of $33.57 and a 1-year high of $41.78.

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The company reported $0.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.24 by $0.01. Essential Utilities had a return on equity of 7.89% and a net margin of 27.84%. The business had revenue of $435.30 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $416.95 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.30 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts anticipate that Essential Utilities, Inc. will post 2.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Essential Utilities Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 2nd. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 12th will be issued a $0.3255 dividend. This represents a $1.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.34%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 12th. Essential Utilities’s dividend payout ratio is currently 65.00%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WTRG has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Jefferies Financial Group cut shares of Essential Utilities from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $44.00 to $41.00 in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Evercore ISI raised their price target 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. Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on Essential Utilities from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on Essential Utilities from $45.00 to $43.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, Bank of America reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $45.00 price target on shares of Essential Utilities in a research report on Friday, September 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $44.00.

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.