Zacks Research Analysts Lower Earnings Estimates for WTRG

Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG) – Research analysts at Zacks Research lowered their FY2025 EPS estimates for Essential Utilities in a report released on Monday, November 25th. Zacks Research analyst R. Department now expects that the company will earn $2.10 per share for the year, down from their prior forecast of $2.11. The consensus estimate for Essential Utilities’ current full-year earnings is $2.01 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Essential Utilities’ Q1 2026 earnings at $0.82 EPS, Q2 2026 earnings at $0.40 EPS and FY2026 earnings at $2.23 EPS.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued research reports about the stock. Evercore ISI increased their target price on shares of Essential Utilities from $42.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on shares of 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 price target on shares of Essential Utilities from $45.00 to $43.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Jefferies Financial Group cut shares of Essential Utilities from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and cut their price target for the stock from $44.00 to $41.00 in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, Bank of America restated a “buy” rating and issued a $45.00 price target on shares of Essential Utilities in a report on Friday, September 20th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Essential Utilities currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $44.00.

Essential Utilities Trading Up 0.6 %

Shares of WTRG opened at $40.28 on Thursday. Essential Utilities has a twelve month low of $33.57 and a twelve month high of $41.78. The company has a market cap of $11.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.14, a P/E/G ratio of 3.17 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a current ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 0.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $39.13 and its 200-day simple moving average is $38.88.

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 net margin of 27.84% and a return on equity of 7.89%. The company had revenue of $435.30 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $416.95 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.30 earnings per share. Essential Utilities’s revenue was up 5.8% on a year-over-year basis.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WTRG. Friedenthal Financial bought a new position in Essential Utilities during the 3rd quarter worth about $25,000. Brooklyn Investment Group bought a new stake in shares of Essential Utilities in the 3rd quarter valued at about $26,000. Darwin Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Essential Utilities in the 3rd quarter valued at about $28,000. First Horizon Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Essential Utilities by 61.4% in the 3rd quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 773 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 294 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Voisard Asset Management Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Essential Utilities in the 2nd quarter valued at about $37,000. 74.78% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Essential Utilities Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 2nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 12th will be issued a dividend of $0.3255 per share. This represents a $1.30 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.23%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 12th. Essential Utilities’s payout ratio is 65.00%.

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.