Essential Utilities Inc Stock Price, News & Analysis

Essential Utilities (NYSE: WTRG) celebrates its 5th anniversary as an integrated utility following the merger of Aqua and Peoples in 2020. Over this period, the company has invested $5.4 billion in infrastructure improvements across water, wastewater, and natural gas systems.

Key achievements include modernizing 2,100 miles of aging water mains and gas pipelines, reducing gas customer outages by 45%, and cutting greenhouse gas emissions by 25%. The company has achieved nearly 100% renewable electricity usage in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Ohio, and Illinois, while maintaining almost perfect drinking water compliance in 2024.

The company has also strengthened community engagement through $20 million in donations via the Essential Foundation and over 15,000 volunteer hours within its service territory.

Aqua Pennsylvania, part of Essential Utilities, announces its Customer Assistance Program (CAP) for 2025, offering monthly discounts on water and wastewater bills to eligible customers. The program, administered through the Dollar Energy Fund (DEF), is available year-round to households meeting specific income criteria.

Customers can verify their eligibility using DEF's income calculator and apply through multiple channels, including phone (1-888-282-6816), online at www.hardshiptools.org/MyApp, or by visiting local community-based organizations. The initiative aims to ensure continued access to essential water and wastewater services for families facing financial challenges.

Essential Utilities (NYSE: WTRG) has appointed Ed Vallejo as its new investor relations director. Vallejo brings over 30 years of experience, including more than 20 years in the water and wastewater industry. He most recently served as Managing Director-Investor Relations Advisory for INSPIR Group.

In his new role, Vallejo will be responsible for developing and maintaining shareholder relationships and creating investor-focused communications. He holds an MBA from NYU's Stern School of Business and a BS from New York Institute of Technology.

Essential Utilities (NYSE: WTRG) reported strong financial results for 2024, with net income reaching $595.3 million and earnings per share increasing 17% to $2.17. The company's revenues grew 1.6% to $2,086.1 million, while operations and maintenance expenses increased modestly by 2.0% to $587.3 million.

Key highlights include:

• Regulated water segment revenues up 5.9% to $1,221.9 million
• Regulated natural gas segment revenues at $843.0 million
• Capital investments of $1.3 billion in infrastructure improvements
• Successful completion of PFAS mitigation at 13 sites

The company affirmed its 2025 EPS guidance of $2.07-$2.11 and projects 5-7% earnings growth through 2027. Essential plans to invest approximately $7.8 billion in infrastructure improvements from 2025-2029, including $450 million for PFAS remediation projects. The company currently has six signed purchase agreements pending closure, representing over 210,000 equivalent retail customers and totaling over $344.0 million in purchase price.

Essential Utilities (NYSE: WTRG) has declared a quarterly cash dividend of $0.3255 per share, payable on June 2, 2025, to shareholders of record on May 13, 2025. This represents a 6.0% increase ($0.0184) compared to the June 2024 dividend payment of $0.3071 per share. The company has maintained its track record of paying consecutive quarterly cash dividends for 80 years.

Essential Utilities Inc. (NYSE: WTRG) has completed the $18 million acquisition of Greenville Sanitary Authority's wastewater system in Mercer County, PA, through its subsidiary Aqua Pennsylvania. The system serves Greenville Borough, Hempfield and West Salem Townships.

The company plans to invest $20 million over the next decade in system improvements to address safety, operational, and environmental issues. These improvements will cost less than half of what the Greenville Sanitary Authority had planned to spend on addressing a Consent Order Agreement with the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, resulting in $20 million in customer savings.

This marks Essential Utilities' fourth water and wastewater acquisition in the past 12 months, adding 2,600 customers or 4,520 equivalent dwelling units. Customer base rates will remain unchanged initially, and eligible customers will gain access to Aqua's assistance programs.

Aqua Pennsylvania has secured $28.9 million in combined grant and low-interest loan funding through PENNVEST to support PFAS removal from drinking water. The funding will enable 6 projects to install PFAS treatment systems at 15 community well sites across Chester, Montgomery, Lackawanna, and Luzerne Counties.

The initiative aims to meet new EPA maximum contaminant levels for six PFAS chemicals in drinking water, set in April 2024, with a compliance deadline of 2028. The projects, expected to be completed by late 2025, will benefit nearly 12,000 customers across multiple townships including Upper Uwchlan, West Whiteland, Douglass, New Hanover, Perkiomen, Jefferson, Dallas, and Penn Lake Borough.

The company has already achieved compliance with Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection PFAS drinking water standards and is working toward meeting federal guidelines. The PENNVEST funding will help reduce the associated costs for customers while implementing these necessary treatment systems.

Essential Utilities has been recognized among America's Most Responsible Companies by Newsweek for the fourth consecutive year, advancing to rank 165 from 401 in 2024. The company, a major water, wastewater, and natural gas provider in the U.S., has demonstrated significant achievements in environmental and social practices through its Aqua and Peoples brands.

Key accomplishments include:

• 25% reduction in Scope 1 and 2 emissions from 2019 baseline, targeting 60% reduction by 2035
• $5 million commitment to community initiatives in 2024
• 99.8% drinking water compliance in 2024
• Replacement of over 1,000 miles of gas pipeline in Pennsylvania and Kentucky
• Nearly 100% renewable electricity usage in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Ohio, and Illinois

The recognition by Newsweek and Statista Inc. evaluates the 600 most responsible companies from the largest 2,000 U.S.-based public companies, based on ESG data and surveys of 26,000 U.S. residents.

Essential Utilities (NYSE: WTRG) has announced it will release its full year 2024 financial results after market close on February 26, 2025. The company will host a conference call with financial analysts on February 27, 2025, at 11 a.m. Eastern Standard Time. The presentation and call will be accessible via webcast on Essential.co in the Investors section. A replay of the call will be available starting at 2 p.m. on February 27, 2025, for seven days, accessible by dialing (800) 770-2030 toll-free or (609) 800-9909 with pass code 9261648.