V Square Quantitative Management LLC Sells 686 Shares of Essential Utilities Inc. $WTRG

V Square Quantitative Management LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Essential Utilities Inc. (NYSE:WTRG) by 18.4% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,052 shares of the company’s stock after selling 686 shares during the quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC’s holdings in Essential Utilities were worth $113,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Bfsg LLC boosted its stake in Essential Utilities by 22.1% during the 1st quarter. Bfsg LLC now owns 1,453 shares of the company’s stock valued at $57,000 after purchasing an additional 263 shares during the period. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Essential Utilities by 24.7% during the 1st quarter. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC now owns 1,531 shares of the company’s stock valued at $61,000 after purchasing an additional 303 shares during the period. Community Bank N.A. boosted its stake in Essential Utilities by 1.3% during the 1st quarter. Community Bank N.A. now owns 23,928 shares of the company’s stock valued at $946,000 after purchasing an additional 304 shares during the period. Truvestments Capital LLC boosted its stake in Essential Utilities by 27.6% during the 1st quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC now owns 1,406 shares of the company’s stock valued at $56,000 after purchasing an additional 304 shares during the period. Finally, Nissay Asset Management Corp Japan ADV boosted its stake in Essential Utilities by 1.0% during the 1st quarter. Nissay Asset Management Corp Japan ADV now owns 32,175 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,272,000 after purchasing an additional 307 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 74.78% of the company’s stock.

Essential Utilities Trading Down 0.6%

Shares of WTRG opened at $38.59 on Friday. Essential Utilities Inc. has a 1 year low of $33.18 and a 1 year high of $41.65. The company has a current ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $38.42 and a 200-day simple moving average of $38.53. The stock has a market cap of $10.82 billion, a PE ratio of 16.56, a PEG ratio of 3.56 and a beta of 0.82.

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The company reported $0.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.29 by $0.09. Essential Utilities had a return on equity of 10.10% and a net margin of 27.62%.The business had revenue of $514.91 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $462.70 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.28 EPS. Essential Utilities’s quarterly revenue was up 18.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Essential Utilities has set its FY 2025 guidance at 2.070-2.110 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Essential Utilities Inc. will post 1.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Essential Utilities Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 2nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 12th were issued a $0.3426 dividend. This represents a $1.37 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, August 12th. This is a boost from Essential Utilities’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.33. Essential Utilities’s payout ratio is currently 58.80%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have commented on the company. Zacks Research downgraded Essential Utilities from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, August 25th. Barclays assumed coverage on Essential Utilities in a research report on Thursday. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $42.00 price objective for the company. UBS Group raised their price objective on Essential Utilities from $42.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 15th. Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on Essential Utilities from $46.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, August 4th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Essential Utilities from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, August 31st. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus 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.