8,266 Shares in Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG) Acquired by Allstate Corp

Allstate Corp acquired a new stake in Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 8,266 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $300,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of WTRG. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Essential Utilities by 8.1% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 30,061,135 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,091,820,000 after purchasing an additional 2,245,256 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its holdings in Essential Utilities by 16.7% during the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 6,811,851 shares of the company’s stock worth $247,134,000 after buying an additional 972,803 shares during the last quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA grew its position in shares of Essential Utilities by 31.2% during the 4th quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 6,726,215 shares of the company’s stock worth $244,296,000 after buying an additional 1,597,672 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Essential Utilities by 2.0% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,305,976 shares of the company’s stock valued at $165,701,000 after acquiring an additional 82,456 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Essential Utilities in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $102,600,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.78% of the company’s stock.

Essential Utilities Stock Performance

WTRG opened at $39.41 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $10.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.71, a P/E/G ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 0.79. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $37.30 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $37.82. Essential Utilities, Inc. has a 1 year low of $33.18 and a 1 year high of $41.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 0.55 and a quick ratio of 0.39.

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 26th. The company reported $0.67 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.66 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $604.38 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $698.77 million. Essential Utilities had a return on equity of 7.89% and a net margin of 27.84%. Equities analysts expect that Essential Utilities, Inc. will post 1.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Essential Utilities Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 2nd. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.3255 per share. This represents a $1.30 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.30%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 13th. Essential Utilities’s payout ratio is 59.91%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have commented on the stock. UBS Group lowered their target price on shares of Essential Utilities from $45.00 to $42.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on shares of Essential Utilities from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Essential Utilities from $39.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Essential Utilities from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $41.00 price target for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $43.50.

About Essential Utilities

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.