In the latest session, Essential Utilities Inc (NYSE: WTRG) closed at $34.89 down -0.40% from its previous closing price of $35.03. In other words, the price has decreased by -$0.14 from its previous closing price. On the day, 2167587 shares were traded.
Ratios:
For a deeper understanding of Essential Utilities Inc’s stock, let’s take a closer look at its various ratios. For the most recent quarter (mrq), Quick Ratio is recorded 0.48 and its Current Ratio is at 0.62. In the meantime, Its Debt-to-Equity ratio is 1.21 whereas as Long-Term Debt/Eq ratio is at 1.16.
On September 28, 2023, Northcoast Upgraded its rating to Buy which previously was Neutral but kept the price unchanged to $42.
Insider Transactions:
Additionally, insider trades can be beneficial to investors who want to learn what the management thinks about stock prices in the future. A recent insider transaction in this stock occurred on Apr 01 ’24 when RUBIN ROBERT A sold 5,565 shares for $37.21 per share. The transaction valued at 207,074 led to the insider holds 57,756 shares of the business.
RUBIN ROBERT A sold 3,551 shares of WTRG for $127,836 on Mar 11 ’24. The Chief Accounting Officer now owns 63,321 shares after completing the transaction at $36.00 per share. On Mar 05 ’24, another insider, Amato Elizabeth B, who serves as the Director of the company, bought 3,100 shares for $35.02 each. As a result, the insider paid 108,559 and bolstered with 16,103 shares of the company.
Valuation Measures:
Investors should consider key stock statistics when deciding whether to invest or divest. In the wake of the recent closing price, WTRG now has a Market Capitalization of 9.54B and an Enterprise Value of 16.63B. As of this moment, Essential’s Price-to-Earnings (P/E) ratio for their current fiscal year is 18.73, and their Forward P/E ratio for the next fiscal year is 16.49. The expected Price-to-Earnings-to-Growth (PEG) calculation for the next 5 years is 3.60. For the stock, the TTM Price-to-Sale (P/S) ratio is 4.65 while its Price-to-Book (P/B) ratio in mrq is 1.62. Its current Enterprise Value per Revenue stands at 8.10 whereas that against EBITDA is 15.70.
Stock Price History:
Over the past 52 weeks, WTRG has reached a high of $45.29, while it has fallen to a 52-week low of $32.07. The 50-Day Moving Average of the stock is 35.78, while the 200-Day Moving Average is calculated to be 36.68.
Shares Statistics:
For the past three months, WTRG has traded an average of 1.81M shares per day and 1.42M over the past ten days. A total of 273.30M shares are outstanding, with a floating share count of 272.93M. Insiders hold about 0.21% of the company’s shares, while institutions hold 76.48% stake in the company. Shares short for WTRG as of Mar 28, 2024 were 6.6M with a Short Ratio of 3.65, compared to 5.56M on Feb 29, 2024. Therefore, it implies a Short% of Shares Outstanding of 2.41% and a Short% of Float of 3.04%.
Dividends & Splits
According to the company, the forward annual dividend rate for WTRG is 1.21, from 1.19 in the trailing year. Against a Trailing Annual Dividend Yield of 3.39%, it implies a Forward Annual Dividend Yield of 3.52%. The stock’s 5-year Average Dividend Yield is 2.38. The current Payout Ratio is 63.83% for WTRG, which recently paid a dividend on Jun 01, 2024 with an ex-dividend date of May 09, 2024. Stock splits for the company last occurred on Sep 03, 2013 when the company split stock in a 5:4 ratio.
Earnings Estimates
There are 5 different market analysts currently analyzing its stock. On average, analysts expect EPS of $0.74 for the current quarter, with a high estimate of $0.79 and a low estimate of $0.67, while EPS last year was $0.72. The consensus estimate for the next quarter is $0.36, with high estimates of $0.43 and low estimates of $0.32.
Analysts are recommending an EPS of between $2 and $1.97 for the fiscal current year, implying an average EPS of $1.98. EPS for the following year is $2.13, with 9 analysts recommending between $2.18 and $2.09.
Revenue Estimates
A total of 3 analysts believe the company’s revenue will be $750.08M this quarter.It ranges from a high estimate of $757M to a low estimate of $745M. As of the current estimate, Essential Utilities Inc’s year-ago sales were $726.45M, an estimated increase of 3.30% from the year-ago figure. For the next quarter, 3 analysts are estimating revenue of $458.23M, an increase of 4.90% over than the figure of $3.30% in the same quarter last year. There is a high estimate of $462.9M for the next quarter, whereas the lowest estimate is $450M.
A total of 7 analysts have provided revenue estimates for WTRG’s current fiscal year. The highest revenue estimate was $2.52B, while the lowest revenue estimate was $2.14B, resulting in an average revenue estimate of $2.37B. In the same quarter a year ago, actual revenue was $2.05B, up 15.50% from the average estimate. Based on 7 analysts’ estimates, the company’s revenue will be $2.53B in the next fiscal year. The high estimate is $2.7B and the low estimate is $2.27B. The average revenue growth estimate for next year is up 6.70% from the average revenue estimate for this year.
