Q2 EPS Forecast for Essential Utilities Reduced by Analyst

Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG) – Investment analysts at Zacks Research reduced their Q2 2025 EPS estimates for shares of Essential Utilities in a research report issued to clients and investors on Monday, November 25th. Zacks Research analyst R. Department now forecasts that the company will earn $0.35 per share for the quarter, down from their prior forecast of $0.38. The consensus estimate for Essential Utilities’ current full-year earnings is $2.01 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Essential Utilities’ Q4 2025 earnings at $0.63 EPS and Q3 2026 earnings at $0.37 EPS.

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The company reported $0.25 earnings per share 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 analysts’ expectations of $416.95 million. Essential Utilities had a net margin of 27.84% and a return on equity of 7.89%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.30 EPS.

WTRG has been the topic of a number of other reports. Jefferies Financial Group lowered shares of Essential Utilities from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their target price for the company from $44.00 to $41.00 in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Evercore ISI increased their price objective on shares of Essential Utilities from $42.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Bank of America reissued a “buy” rating and set a $45.00 target price on shares of Essential Utilities in a research report on Friday, September 20th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of Essential Utilities from $45.00 to $43.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on shares of Essential Utilities from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Essential Utilities currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $44.00.

Essential Utilities Price Performance

Shares of NYSE WTRG opened at $40.05 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $11.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.02, a PEG ratio of 3.17 and a beta of 0.84. Essential Utilities has a 52 week low of $33.57 and a 52 week high of $41.78. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $39.06 and its 200 day moving average price is $38.86. The company has a current ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 0.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Essential Utilities

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of WTRG. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its stake in Essential Utilities by 12.1% in the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 139,534 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,171,000 after purchasing an additional 15,009 shares in the last quarter. Kennedy Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Essential Utilities by 5.9% in the 1st quarter. Kennedy Capital Management LLC now owns 80,749 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,992,000 after purchasing an additional 4,499 shares in the last quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System increased its stake in Essential Utilities by 11.8% in the 1st quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 610,667 shares of the company’s stock worth $22,625,000 after purchasing an additional 64,394 shares in the last quarter. Sanibel Captiva Trust Company Inc. boosted its position in Essential Utilities by 5.4% during the 1st quarter. Sanibel Captiva Trust Company Inc. now owns 6,491 shares of the company’s stock worth $240,000 after acquiring an additional 334 shares during the period. Finally, Cetera Investment Advisers boosted its position in Essential Utilities by 198.4% during the 1st quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 48,750 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,806,000 after acquiring an additional 32,415 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.78% of the company’s stock.

Essential Utilities Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 2nd. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 12th will be issued a dividend of $0.3255 per share. This represents a $1.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.25%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 12th. Essential Utilities’s payout ratio is currently 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.