Glenmede Trust Co. NA Has $2 Million Stock Holdings in Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG)

Glenmede Trust Co. NA lifted its holdings in Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG) by 1.6% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 51,881 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 803 shares during the quarter. Glenmede Trust Co. NA’s holdings in Essential Utilities were worth $2,001,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of WTRG. Friedenthal Financial acquired a new stake in shares of Essential Utilities in the third quarter worth $25,000. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new stake in shares of Essential Utilities during the third quarter worth $26,000. Darwin Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Essential Utilities during the third quarter worth $28,000. First Horizon Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Essential Utilities by 61.4% during the third quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 773 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 294 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Voisard Asset Management Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Essential Utilities during the second quarter worth $37,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.78% of the company’s stock.

Essential Utilities Price Performance

NYSE WTRG opened at $40.03 on Monday. Essential Utilities, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $33.57 and a fifty-two week high of $41.78. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $39.18 and its two-hundred day moving average is $38.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 0.55 and a quick ratio of 0.39. The firm has a market cap of $10.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.17 and a beta of 0.84.

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

Essential Utilities Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 2nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 12th will be paid a $0.3255 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 12th. This represents a $1.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.25%. Essential Utilities’s payout ratio is presently 65.00%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently issued reports on the company. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on Essential Utilities from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. Bank of America reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $45.00 price objective on shares of Essential Utilities in a report on Friday, September 20th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Essential Utilities from $45.00 to $43.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered Essential Utilities from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and cut their price objective for the stock from $44.00 to $41.00 in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, Evercore ISI raised their target price on Essential Utilities from $42.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, August 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock 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.