What is Seaport Res Ptn’s Estimate for WTRG FY2028 Earnings?

Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG) – Analysts at Seaport Res Ptn issued their FY2028 EPS estimates for shares of Essential Utilities in a research report issued on Friday, April 11th. Seaport Res Ptn analyst A. Storozynski expects that the company will post earnings of $2.50 per share for the year. The consensus estimate for Essential Utilities’ current full-year earnings is $1.99 per share.

A number of other research analysts have also issued reports on the company. Evercore ISI boosted their target price on Essential Utilities from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. StockNews.com cut shares of Essential Utilities from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday. UBS Group reduced their target price on shares of Essential Utilities from $45.00 to $42.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Essential Utilities from $39.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised Essential Utilities from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $41.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $43.50.

Essential Utilities Stock Performance

Shares of WTRG stock opened at $39.91 on Monday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $38.11 and its 200 day moving average price is $37.85. The company has a quick ratio of 0.39, a current ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.00 billion, a PE ratio of 19.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 0.80. Essential Utilities has a 52-week low of $33.18 and a 52-week high of $41.78.

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 26th. The company reported $0.67 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.66 by $0.01. Essential Utilities had a net margin of 27.84% and a return on equity of 7.89%. The company had revenue of $604.38 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $698.77 million.

Institutional Trading of Essential Utilities

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Blair William & Co. IL boosted its position in shares of Essential Utilities by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 24,652 shares of the company’s stock worth $895,000 after buying an additional 285 shares in the last quarter. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV lifted its holdings in shares of Essential Utilities by 4.8% in the fourth quarter. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV now owns 6,342 shares of the company’s stock valued at $230,000 after purchasing an additional 289 shares in the last quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System grew its position in shares of Essential Utilities by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 70,100 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,546,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares during the last quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC raised its position in shares of Essential Utilities by 1.7% during the 4th quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC now owns 19,527 shares of the company’s stock worth $709,000 after purchasing an additional 317 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in Essential Utilities by 7.2% in the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 4,946 shares of the company’s stock valued at $180,000 after buying an additional 332 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.78% of the company’s stock.

Essential Utilities Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 2nd. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.3255 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 13th. This represents a $1.30 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.26%. Essential Utilities’s dividend payout ratio is presently 59.91%.

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.