Short Interest in Essential Utilities Inc. (NYSE:WTRG) Grows By 14.6%

Essential Utilities Inc. (NYSE:WTRG) was the recipient of a large growth in short interest during the month of February. As of February 27th, there was short interest totaling 7,835,006 shares, a growth of 14.6% from the February 12th total of 6,837,681 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 5,198,083 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 1.5 days. Approximately 2.8% of the company’s shares are sold short. Approximately 2.8% of the company’s shares are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 5,198,083 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 1.5 days.

Institutional Trading of Essential Utilities

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. GoalVest Advisory LLC acquired a new position in Essential Utilities during the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. American National Bank & Trust purchased a new stake in shares of Essential Utilities in the third quarter worth approximately $27,000. Fideuram Asset Management Ireland dac bought a new position in shares of Essential Utilities in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp boosted its position in shares of Essential Utilities by 1,163.8% during the third quarter. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp now owns 733 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 675 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd bought a new stake in Essential Utilities during the fourth quarter worth $32,000. Institutional investors own 74.78% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently weighed in on WTRG. Northcoast Research raised Essential Utilities from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $42.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Wednesday, December 3rd. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Essential Utilities in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Barclays set a $38.00 target price on Essential Utilities and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 17th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has issued a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $43.20.

Essential Utilities Stock Up 0.0%

Shares of WTRG stock traded up $0.01 on Tuesday, reaching $41.05. 697,269 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,563,392. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.65. The company has a 50-day moving average of $39.22 and a 200-day moving average of $39.10. The company has a market cap of $11.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.56 and a beta of 0.81. Essential Utilities has a one year low of $36.32 and a one year high of $42.37.

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 26th. The company reported $0.47 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.36 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $699.11 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $611.60 million. Essential Utilities had a return on equity of 9.18% and a net margin of 24.91%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.67 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Essential Utilities will post 1.99 earnings per share for the current year.

Essential Utilities Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 1st. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 12th will be issued a $0.3426 dividend. This represents a $1.37 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.3%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 12th. Essential Utilities’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 61.99%.

About Essential Utilities

Essential Utilities, Inc, formerly known as Aqua America, is a publicly traded water and natural gas utility holding company. Through its regulated water and wastewater subsidiaries, the company provides essential water services to residential, commercial and industrial customers. In addition, Essential Utilities delivers natural gas distribution services in Pennsylvania through its Peoples Gas subsidiary, offering integrated utility solutions under a unified corporate framework.

The company traces its roots to the Philadelphia Suburban Water Company, founded in 1886 to serve growing communities outside Philadelphia.