Northcape Wealth Management LLC Purchases New Shares in Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG)

Northcape Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 13,451 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $489,000.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in WTRG. CIBC Asset Management Inc lifted its position in shares of Essential Utilities by 1.8% during the third quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 14,243 shares of the company’s stock valued at $549,000 after purchasing an additional 250 shares in the last quarter. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV increased its stake in Essential Utilities by 4.8% in the 4th quarter. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV now owns 6,342 shares of the company’s stock valued at $230,000 after buying an additional 289 shares during the last quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of Essential Utilities by 61.4% during the 3rd quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 773 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 294 shares in the last quarter. Tompkins Financial Corp boosted its stake in shares of Essential Utilities by 21.7% in the 3rd quarter. Tompkins Financial Corp now owns 1,685 shares of the company’s stock worth $65,000 after buying an additional 300 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Louisiana State Employees Retirement System boosted its stake in shares of Essential Utilities by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 70,100 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,546,000 after buying an additional 300 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 74.78% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WTRG has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company downgraded Essential Utilities from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and decreased their price target for the company from $43.00 to $39.00 in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Jefferies Financial Group raised Essential Utilities from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $41.00 target price for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on shares of Essential Utilities from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. Finally, UBS Group reduced their price target on shares of Essential Utilities from $45.00 to $42.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Essential Utilities currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $43.00.

Essential Utilities Stock Performance

NYSE:WTRG opened at $35.66 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $9.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.83, a P/E/G ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 0.86. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $35.71 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $37.97. 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, Inc. has a 1 year low of $33.18 and a 1 year high of $41.78.

Essential Utilities Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 3rd. Investors of record on Monday, February 10th will be issued a $0.3255 dividend. This represents a $1.30 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.65%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 10th. Essential Utilities’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 65.00%.

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.