Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. Purchases 30,152 Shares of Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG)

Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG) by 24.7% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 152,120 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 30,152 shares during the quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. owned approximately 0.06% of Essential Utilities worth $5,636,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in WTRG. Nordea Investment Management AB raised its position in shares of Essential Utilities by 17,553.7% during the first quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 3,425,350 shares of the company’s stock worth $126,156,000 after acquiring an additional 3,405,947 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Essential Utilities during the fourth quarter worth $97,288,000. UBS Group AG raised its position in shares of Essential Utilities by 271.9% during the fourth quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 1,225,849 shares of the company’s stock worth $45,785,000 after acquiring an additional 896,223 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Essential Utilities by 3.0% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 27,992,080 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,045,504,000 after acquiring an additional 823,495 shares during the last quarter. Finally, ING Groep NV bought a new stake in shares of Essential Utilities during the fourth quarter worth $15,097,000. Institutional investors own 74.78% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Essential Utilities

In related news, CAO Robert A. Rubin sold 2,342 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $37.43, for a total transaction of $87,661.06. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 53,391 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,998,425.13. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other Essential Utilities news, CAO Robert A. Rubin sold 2,342 shares of Essential Utilities stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $37.43, for a total transaction of $87,661.06. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 53,391 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,998,425.13. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CAO Robert A. Rubin sold 2,023 shares of Essential Utilities stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.56, for a total value of $73,960.88. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 13,358 shares in the company, valued at $488,368.48. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.21% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Essential Utilities Stock Down 0.5 %

Shares of Essential Utilities stock opened at $40.72 on Friday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $37.98 and a two-hundred day moving average of $36.91. The company has a market capitalization of $11.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.61 and a beta of 0.83. Essential Utilities, Inc. has a 1 year low of $32.07 and a 1 year high of $43.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 0.62 and a quick ratio of 0.52.

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 2nd. The company reported $0.73 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.76 by ($0.03). Essential Utilities had a net margin of 29.52% and a return on equity of 8.62%. The firm had revenue of $612.07 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $747.44 million. As a group, equities analysts predict that Essential Utilities, Inc. will post 1.97 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, Robert W. Baird dropped their price objective on Essential Utilities from $44.00 to $43.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, May 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $43.00.

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.