Short Interest in Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG) Declines By 18.6%

Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG) was the target of a large decline in short interest during the month of April. As of April 15th, there was short interest totalling 5,370,000 shares, a decline of 18.6% from the March 31st total of 6,600,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 1,790,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 3.0 days.

Essential Utilities Stock Performance

WTRG traded down $0.48 during trading on Friday, reaching $36.09. 1,273,344 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,636,954. Essential Utilities has a fifty-two week low of $32.07 and a fifty-two week high of $43.74. The company has a quick ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 0.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $35.74 and a 200 day moving average price of $35.75. The company has a market capitalization of $9.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.40, a PEG ratio of 3.14 and a beta of 0.82.

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, February 23rd. The company reported $0.50 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.49 by $0.01. Essential Utilities had a net margin of 24.26% and a return on equity of 8.68%. The firm had revenue of $479.40 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $708.50 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.44 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was down 32.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that Essential Utilities will post 2 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Essential Utilities Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.3071 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 9th. This is a boost from Essential Utilities’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. This represents a $1.23 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.40%. Essential Utilities’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 66.13%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, Evercore ISI lowered their price objective on shares of Essential Utilities from $51.00 to $42.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 4th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $43.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CAO Robert A. Rubin sold 5,565 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $37.21, for a total value of $207,073.65. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 57,756 shares in the company, valued at $2,149,100.76. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.21% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in WTRG. Bare Financial Services Inc bought a new position in shares of Essential Utilities during the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Tradewinds Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Essential Utilities by 857.5% during the first quarter. Tradewinds Capital Management LLC now owns 699 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 626 shares during the period. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV lifted its holdings in shares of Essential Utilities by 604.0% during the fourth quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 711 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 610 shares during the period. Lindbrook Capital LLC raised its holdings in shares of Essential Utilities by 78.9% in the fourth quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 737 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 325 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Valley National Advisers Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Essential Utilities by 4,210.0% in the fourth quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. now owns 862 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 842 shares during the last quarter. 74.78% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.