Essential Utilities Inc (NYSE: WTRG) has a higher price-to-earnings ratio of 17.91x compared to its average ratio. WTRG has 36-month beta value of 0.80. Analysts have mixed views on the stock, with 8 analysts rating it as a “buy,” 1 as “overweight,” 2 as “hold,” and 0 as “sell.”
The public float for WTRG is 273.82M, and currently, short sellers hold a 1.70% ratio of that float. The average trading volume of WTRG on February 13, 2025 was 1.38M shares.
WTRG) stock’s latest price update
Essential Utilities Inc (NYSE: WTRG)’s stock price has increased by 0.88 compared to its previous closing price of 35.41. However, the company has seen a 1.13% increase in its stock price over the last five trading sessions. businesswire.com reported 2025-02-01 that BRYN MAWR, Pa.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE: WTRG) announced today its Aqua Pennsylvania subsidiary has finalized its $18 million purchase of the Greenville Sanitary Authority’s wastewater system in Mercer County, PA. The system serves Greenville Borough, Hempfield and West Salem Townships. The Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission (PUC) approved the sale on December 12, 2024. This is the first transaction approved by the Pennsylvania PUC since implementing improvements ov.
WTRG’s Market Performance
Essential Utilities Inc (WTRG) has experienced a 1.13% rise in stock performance for the past week, with a 5.87% rise in the past month, and a -9.96% drop in the past quarter. The volatility ratio for the week is 1.56%, and the volatility levels for the past 30 days are at 2.04% for WTRG. The simple moving average for the last 20 days is 1.94% for WTRG stock, with a simple moving average of -6.49% for the last 200 days.
Analysts’ Opinion of WTRG
Many brokerage firms have already submitted their reports for WTRG stocks, with Jefferies repeating the rating for WTRG by listing it as a “Buy.” The predicted price for WTRG in the upcoming period, according to Jefferies is $41 based on the research report published on January 28, 2025 of the current year 2025.
Wells Fargo, on the other hand, stated in their research note that they expect to see WTRG reach a price target of $39, previously predicting the price at $43. The rating they have provided for WTRG stocks is “Equal Weight” according to the report published on January 07th, 2025.
Jefferies gave a rating of “Hold” to WTRG, setting the target price at $41 in the report published on November 07th of the previous year.
WTRG Trading at -1.63% from the 50-Day Moving Average
After a stumble in the market that brought WTRG to its low price for the period of the last 52 weeks, the company was unable to rebound, for now settling with -14.50% of loss for the given period.
Volatility was left at 2.04%, however, over the last 30 days, the volatility rate increased by 1.56%, as shares surge +4.72% for the moving average over the last 20 days. Over the last 50 days, in opposition, the stock is trading -11.32% lower at present.
During the last 5 trading sessions, WTRG rose by +1.13%, which changed the moving average for the period of 200-days by -2.32% in comparison to the 20-day moving average, which settled at $35.04. In addition, Essential Utilities Inc saw -1.65% in overturn over a single year, with a tendency to cut further losses.
Insider Trading
Reports are indicating that there were more than several insider trading activities at WTRG starting from RUBIN ROBERT A, who sale 2,342 shares at the price of $37.43 back on Jul 01 ’24. After this action, RUBIN ROBERT A now owns 53,391 shares of Essential Utilities Inc, valued at $87,661 using the latest closing price.
RUBIN ROBERT A, the Chief Accounting Officer of Essential Utilities Inc, sale 2,023 shares at $36.56 during a trade that took place back on May 01 ’24, which means that RUBIN ROBERT A is holding 13,358 shares at $73,961 based on the most recent closing price.
Stock Fundamentals for WTRG
Current profitability levels for the company are sitting at:
- 0.36 for the present operating margin
- 0.45 for the gross margin
The net margin for Essential Utilities Inc stands at 0.28. The total capital return value is set at 0.04. Equity return is now at value 9.02, with 3.21 for asset returns.
Based on Essential Utilities Inc (WTRG), the company’s capital structure generated 0.55 points at debt to capital in total, while cash flow to debt ratio is standing at 0.1. The debt to equity ratio resting at 1.2. The interest coverage ratio of the stock is 2.38.
Currently, EBITDA for the company is 1.06 billion with net debt to EBITDA at 6.86. When we switch over and look at the enterprise to sales, we see a ratio of 8.79. The receivables turnover for the company is 9.62for trailing twelve months and the total asset turnover is 0.11. The liquidity ratio also appears to be rather interesting for investors as it stands at 0.55.
Conclusion
To put it simply, Essential Utilities Inc (WTRG) has had a mixed performance in recent times. Analysts have a bullish opinion on the stock, with some rating it as a “buy” and others as a “hold”. It’s important to note that the stock is currently trading at a significant distance from its 50-day moving average and its 52-week high.
