First National Corp MA ADV Has $1.05 Million Position in Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG)

First National Corp MA ADV boosted its position in shares of Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG) by 81.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 28,891 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 12,976 shares during the quarter. First National Corp MA ADV’s holdings in Essential Utilities were worth $1,049,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of WTRG. CIBC Asset Management Inc raised its stake in shares of Essential Utilities by 1.8% during the third quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 14,243 shares of the company’s stock worth $549,000 after buying an additional 250 shares during the last quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in Essential Utilities by 61.4% during the 3rd quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 773 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 294 shares during the period. Tompkins Financial Corp raised its position in shares of Essential Utilities by 21.7% during the 3rd quarter. Tompkins Financial Corp now owns 1,685 shares of the company’s stock valued at $65,000 after acquiring an additional 300 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in shares of Essential Utilities by 7.2% during the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 4,946 shares of the company’s stock valued at $180,000 after acquiring an additional 332 shares during the last quarter. Finally, V Square Quantitative Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Essential Utilities by 10.6% in the 3rd quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 3,477 shares of the company’s stock valued at $134,000 after purchasing an additional 333 shares during the period. 74.78% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on WTRG shares. Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on Essential Utilities from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered Essential Utilities from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $43.00 to $39.00 in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Essential Utilities from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $41.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, UBS Group decreased their price objective on shares of Essential Utilities from $45.00 to $42.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $43.00.

Essential Utilities Trading Down 0.5 %

NYSE WTRG opened at $35.15 on Monday. Essential Utilities, Inc. has a one year low of $33.18 and a one year high of $41.78. 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 $9.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.58, a P/E/G ratio of 2.53 and a beta of 0.86. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $36.25 and its 200-day moving average is $38.24.

Essential Utilities Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 3rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.3255 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 10th. This represents a $1.30 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.70%. Essential Utilities’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 65.00%.

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.