WTRG Essential Utilities Inc
$40.70
▲ 1.0%Updated Oct 16, 2:25 PM ET
Report Card
WTRG at a glance — five pillars scored 0–100 from real filed financials.
How the 0–100 rating is calculatedOverall: Neutral · 57/100. A wider, greener shape means more pillars look healthy. Dividends scores 0 when a company pays none — that is a choice, not a flaw.
Price — Past Year
▲ Up 4.4% in the year to Jul 6, 2026
Key Metrics
Market Cap
$10.75B
P/E
20.17x
Forward P/E (est.)
22.82x
ROE
8.2%
Revenue Growth
13.1%
EPS Growth
-11.6%
Profit Margin
21.8%
FCF Yield
7.9%
Debt / Equity
1.21x
ROIC
7.0%
Interest Coverage
2.8x
Current Ratio
0.78x
Dividend Yield
3.6%
Implied Growth (rev. DCF)
—
Rating Score
57/100
Business Overview
Essential Utilities Inc (WTRG) is a large-cap NYSE-listed company in the Utilities industry, within the Utilities sector, with a market value around $10.75B.
In its latest reported year it generated about $2.47B in revenue and $616.37M in net profit.
Our model rates WTRG Neutral (57/100) on growth, profitability, financial health, and valuation. The summary below is built from its filed financials and current ratios and refreshes automatically.
Economic Moat
Evidence of durable competitive advantage in the filed financials (10 years of history).
Profit margins and economic moats, explainedSome durable-advantage evidence, but not across the board — dig into which ingredient is weak and whether it's cyclical or structural.
35.7% average over the last 3 years
±4.1 pts around 35.7% across 10 years
grew in 7 of the last 9 year-over-year periods
positive in 8 of 10 years
7.0% latest fiscal year
A moat can't be proven by numbers alone — this scores the evidence a durable advantage leaves behind (pricing power, consistency, returns on capital), computed the same way for every stock. Pair it with the business overview before concluding anything.
Technical Analysis (Educational)
Technical analysis reads price and volume to judge momentum and timing. It complements the fundamentals above — it does not replace them. Here is what WTRG's chart says today, with each tool explained.
Trend — moving averages. A moving average is the average closing price over a window, which smooths out daily noise. WTRG trades near $40.70, above its 50-day average ($37.69) and 200-day average ($38.91). Price above both averages, with the shorter one above the longer, is the textbook definition of an uptrend — momentum favours buyers.
Momentum — RSI. The Relative Strength Index runs 0–100 and measures how strong recent gains are versus losses. Above 70 is "overbought", below 30 "oversold". At 57 it is in neutral territory — neither stretched nor washed out.
MACD. MACD compares two moving averages to flag shifts in momentum. Its histogram is currently positive — short-term momentum is improving.
Volatility — ATR. Average True Range is the typical daily move. WTRG's is $0.93 (~2.3% of price), so swings of about that size each day are normal — handy for setting a stop that isn't too tight.
Support & resistance. In the month to Jul 6, 2026, WTRG found buyers near $36.34 (support) and sellers near $39.61 (resistance); its 52-week range then was $36.11–$42.37. A decisive break beyond either edge often marks the next move.
Volume. The latest session traded 0.3× the 20-day average — lighter than usual, so the move carries less conviction. Rising volume on up-days suggests real buying; on down-days, real selling.
Educational information to help you read a chart — not a recommendation or a forecast. The indicators were last computed on Jul 6, 2026; the price is current.
Revenue Growth
4Y CAGR
7.1%
Revenue moved from $819.88M in 2016 to $2.47B in 2025, a 13.1% compound annual growth rate. The most recent year grew a steady 13.1% year over year. Consistent top-line growth is one sign of healthy demand.
Profitability
Gross Margin
49.3%
Operating Margin
37.2%
Net Margin
24.9%
ROE
8.2%
Essential Utilities Inc keeps about 21.8% of each sales dollar as net profit, with a 49.3% gross margin and 37.2% operating margin. Return on equity is 8.2% and return on invested capital about 7.0%. Margins this wide usually signal pricing power or a cost advantage.
Debt Analysis
Total Debt
$3.06B
Net Debt
$3.05B
Net Debt / EBITDA
3.32x
Debt / Equity
1.21x
Leverage: debt-to-equity is 1.2x, and operating profit covers interest about 2.8x, with a current ratio of 0.8x. That is a moderate, manageable debt load for most businesses. It carries roughly $3.06B of total debt against $8.63M of cash.
Cash Flow Analysis
Operating CF
$1.01B
Free Cash Flow
$1.01B
FCF Margin
40.8%
In the latest year Essential Utilities Inc produced about $1.01B of operating cash flow and $1.01B of free cash flow after capital spending. That is a free-cash-flow yield of about 7.9% on today's price. Strong cash generation funds dividends, buybacks, and reinvestment.
Dividend Safety
Can the payout survive a bad year? Scored from filed cash flow, earnings coverage, and the raise/cut record.
What to look for in a dividend stockThe payout is comfortably covered by cash the business actually generates, with a raise habit behind it.
Dividend yield
3.6%
Per share (latest FY)
$1.34
Total paid (latest FY)
$373.82M
History on record
10 years
dividend uses 37% of free cash flow
61% of net income paid out
total dividends increased 9 years in a row
no cuts in the last 10 years on record
Coverage uses the latest fiscal year as filed with the SEC; the streak counts total dollars paid (per-share figures can carry split artifacts). Educational information, not income advice.
Valuation Analysis
P/E
20.17x
P/S
4.54x
P/B
1.58x
EV / EBITDA
10.32x
WTRG trades at 20.2x trailing earnings (about 22.8x on estimated forward earnings), 4.5x sales, and 1.6x book value. That is a fairly typical valuation for a profitable company.
Metrics vs. Sector Range
Where WTRG sits versus the Utilities companies we cover.
Bands show the middle half (25th–75th percentile) of the 38 Utilities companies in our coverage that have fundamentals data — the peer-relative anchor professional comps analysis uses. Context only — not investment advice.
Sector Peer Comparison
How WTRG stacks up against its Utilities peers — valuation, profitability, and growth versus the sector median.
Among the 38 rated Utilities companies we cover, WTRG ranks #13 by our overall rating. It trades at roughly in line versus the sector on earnings (20.2x P/E vs. 20.5x median) with a lower return on equity (8.2% vs. 10.3%) and faster revenue growth (13.1% vs. 8.8%).
P/E vs sector
20.2x
median 20.5x
ROE vs sector
8.2%
median 10.3%
Growth vs sector
13.1%
median 8.8%
Sector rank
#13
of 38 rated
Valuation vs. quality map
The sweet spot is upper-left: more profitable (higher ROE) for a lower P/E. Dashed lines mark the sector median.
Peers are the closest Utilities companies by sub-industry and size, preferring ones with full data. Sector medians and rank use the 38 rated companies among the 47 Utilities stocks we cover. Educational, not a recommendation.
5-Year Projection Model
Project revenue → earnings → price. Edit the assumptions to build your own case.
What drives this projection, and its limits2030 scenario price range (Base Case)
$51.77 – $86.29
vs. $40.70 today · implied CAGR 5% – 16%
| Metric | 2026 | 2027 | 2028 | 2029 | 2030 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $2.80B | $3.16B | $3.57B | $4.03B | $4.56B |
| Net income | $699.08M | $789.96M | $892.65M | $1.01B | $1.14B |
| EPS | $2.65 | $2.99 | $3.38 | $3.82 | $4.31 |
| Share price (low) | $31.75 | $35.88 | $40.55 | $45.82 | $51.77 |
| Share price (high) | $52.92 | $59.80 | $67.58 | $76.36 | $86.29 |
| CAGR (low–high) | -22% / 30% | -6% / 21% | -0% / 18% | 3% / 17% | 5% / 16% |
Educational scenario model, not a forecast or investment advice. It starts from the latest annual revenue in SEC filings. By default, growth is trailing revenue growth (held between 3% and 45% a year), the net margin is the latest one (held between 3% and 50%, so a loss-making company is modeled with a small profit), and the Base case P/E runs from 60% to 100% of today's. Carrying recent growth forward five years can miss badly in either direction. Outputs are only as good as the assumptions.
Bull Case
The case for WTRG:
- Revenue is growing 13.1% a year, a sign of real demand.
- High net margins (21.8%) point to pricing power or efficiency.
- Healthy free-cash-flow yield (~7.9%) funds buybacks and dividends.
- Pays a 3.6% dividend on top of any price gains.
Bear Case
The case against WTRG:
- Interest coverage is thin (2.8x), so debt costs bite.
- Like any single stock, it is exposed to competition, the economic cycle, and shifts in its end markets.
Key Risks
Balance-sheet risk — debt/equity of 1.2x magnifies the impact of higher rates or weaker earnings.
Market risk — sector rotation, the economic cycle, and broad sentiment move the stock regardless of fundamentals.
Investment Thesis
On balance, the picture is mixed: Essential Utilities Inc is a large-cap utilities business still growing nicely, with solid profitability, and a heavier debt load to watch. It trades at 20.2x earnings, which our model scores Neutral (57/100). Weigh this against your own goals and time horizon — this is educational information, not a recommendation.
Latest SEC Filings
WTRG's most recent filings, straight from SEC EDGAR. Annual and quarterly reports are the deep dives; 8-Ks flag material events the moment they happen. How to read a 10-K
In the Idea Lab
WTRG — frequently asked questions
Is WTRG a good stock to buy?
We don't give buy or sell advice. Our model rates Essential Utilities Inc Neutral (57/100) based on its growth, profitability, financial health, and valuation — use that as a research starting point and make your own decision.
What is WTRG's rating on The Stocks School?
Essential Utilities Inc currently scores 57/100 (Neutral) on our transparent model, which weighs real fundamentals: growth, margins, returns on capital, balance-sheet strength, and valuation.
How our ratings work →Where does WTRG's data come from?
Live price data plus real fundamentals and 5-year financials pulled directly from Essential Utilities Inc's SEC filings — refreshed automatically, not hand-entered.
How is the 5-year projection for WTRG calculated?
It's a scenario model. It starts from the latest annual revenue and net margin in SEC filings, grows revenue at an assumed rate (trailing revenue growth by default), and applies a P/E range built around today's multiple to show the resulting share-price range. When a stock has no growth or P/E data, the starting values are placeholders. It's a tool for thinking, not a prediction.
Is this WTRG analysis financial advice?
No. Everything on this page is educational research, not financial advice or a recommendation to buy or sell WTRG. Always do your own research and consider a licensed professional.
Data notice. Fundamentals and financial statements are sourced from company filings (SEC EDGAR) and market-data providers; prices and market caps refresh on trading days and may be delayed. Ratings, projections, technical signals, and written summaries are model- or rule-generated for education and may simplify or lag the latest filings.
Not advice. Nothing on this page is investment advice or a recommendation to buy, hold, or sell any security. Do your own research and consult a licensed financial professional before investing.