<div id="readability-page-1"><p>Hennion &amp; Walsh Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of  Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities &amp; Exchange Commission. The fund bought 9,264 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $366,000.</p><div><p><span></span><span>Get <strong>Essential Utilities</strong> alerts:</span></p></div><ul><li>Top 3 Stocks to Outperform the S&amp;P 500 in a Downturn</li></ul><p>Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of WTRG. Brighton Jones LLC bought a new stake in shares of  Essential Utilities in the fourth quarter valued at $638,000.  abrdn plc raised its stake in shares of  Essential Utilities by 76.4% during the 4th quarter. abrdn plc now owns 175,721 shares of the company's stock valued at $6,337,000 after purchasing an additional 76,091 shares during the period.  Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB raised its stake in shares of  Essential Utilities by 1.3% during the 4th quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 55,507 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,016,000 after purchasing an additional 698 shares during the period.  Benedict Financial Advisors Inc. raised its stake in shares of  Essential Utilities by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Benedict Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 77,700 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,822,000 after purchasing an additional 902 shares during the period.  Finally, First National Corp MA ADV raised its stake in shares of  Essential Utilities by 81.5% during the 4th quarter. First National Corp MA ADV now owns 28,891 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,049,000 after purchasing an additional 12,976 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own  74.78% of the company's stock. </p><h2>Essential Utilities Stock Down 0.0%</h2><p>Shares of NYSE:WTRG opened at $37.65 on Monday. Essential Utilities, Inc. has a 52-week low of $33.18 and a 52-week high of $41.78. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.83, a P/E/G ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 0.81. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $39.32 and a 200-day moving average price of $37.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 0.39 and a current ratio of 0.55. </p><p>Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 12th. The company reported $1.03 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.80 by $0.23. Essential Utilities had a return on equity of 7.89% and a net margin of 27.84%. The company had revenue of $783.63 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $713.80 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.97 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 28.0% compared to the same quarter last year.  As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that  Essential Utilities, Inc. will post 1.99 EPS for the current fiscal year. </p><h2>Analysts Set New Price Targets</h2><p>A number of analysts recently issued reports on WTRG shares. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on Essential Utilities from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the company an &#34;outperform&#34; rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Essential Utilities from a &#34;sell&#34; rating to a &#34;hold&#34; rating in a research report on Sunday, April 20th. Wells Fargo &amp; Company upped their price objective on Essential Utilities from $39.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock an &#34;equal weight&#34; rating in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, Robert W. Baird cut their price objective on Essential Utilities from $47.00 to $46.00 and set an &#34;outperform&#34; rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned  a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Essential Utilities  has an average rating of &#34;Moderate Buy&#34; and an average target price of $43.50.</p><p><b>Get Our Latest Stock Report on WTRG</b></p><h2>About Essential Utilities</h2> (Free Report)<p>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.</p><h2>Further Reading</h2><ul><li>Five stocks we like better than Essential Utilities</li><li>Options Trading - Understanding  Strike Price</li><li>Five Below Pops on Strong Earnings, But Rally May Stall</li><li>Top Biotech Stocks: Exploring Innovation Opportunities</li><li>Intel's Dual Gamble: AI Innovation Now, Foundry Fortunes Later?</li><li>What Investors Must Know About Over-the-Counter (OTC) Stocks</li><li>X: 1 Reason to Bet on U.S. Steel, and 1 Reason to Hold Back</li></ul><p><strong>Want to see what other hedge funds are holding WTRG?</strong> Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG - Free Report).</p><p><img src="https://imageproxy.pbkrs.com/https://www.marketbeat.com/scripts/SECFilingChart.ashx/query-UHJlZml4PU5ZU0UmU3ltYm9sPVdUUkc?x-oss-process=image/auto-orient,1/interlace,1/resize,w_1440,h_1440/quality,q_95/format,jpg" width="650" height="350" original-src="https://imageproxy.pbkrs.com/https://www.marketbeat.com/scripts/SECFilingChart.ashx/query-UHJlZml4PU5ZU0UmU3ltYm9sPVdUUkc"/></p><p><em>This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.</em></p><h2>Should You Invest $1,000 in Essential Utilities Right Now?</h2><p>Before you consider Essential Utilities, you'll want to hear this.</p><p>MarketBeat keeps track of Wall Street's top-rated and best performing research analysts and the stocks they recommend to their clients on a daily basis. MarketBeat has identified the five stocks that top analysts are quietly whispering to their clients to buy now before the broader market catches on... and Essential Utilities wasn't on the list.</p><p>While Essential Utilities currently has a Moderate Buy rating among analysts, top-rated analysts believe these five stocks are better buys.</p><p>View The Five Stocks Here</p>                  </div>

WTRG

<p>Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG) during Q1, purchasing 9,264 shares valued at approximately $366,000. Other institutional investors have also increased their stakes in the company. Essential Utilities reported a quarterly EPS of $1.03, exceeding estimates, with revenue of $783.63 million. Analysts have set a target price of $43.50 for the stock, which has an average rating of "Moderate Buy."</p>

Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. Buys New Position in Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG)