Essential Utilities Analyst Ratings and Price Targets | NYSE:WTRG

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Essential Utilities Inc Analyst Ratings

WTRGNYSE

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$39.73

1.152.98%

At close: Feb 13, 4:00 PM EST

$39.73

N/A

After Hours: 4:00 PM EST

Dividend: The dividend Ex-Date was 5 days ago

Earnings: Q4 2025 Earnings in 11 days from now on Wed Feb 25th, after the market close

Overview News Earnings Options Guidance DividendsAnalyst RatingsInsider Trades Short Interest Government Trades Stock Report

Consensus Rating¹

Outperform

Highest Price Target¹

$54.00

Lowest Price Target¹

$38.00

Consensus Price Target¹

$44.67

Essential Utilities Analyst Ratings and Price Targets | NYSE:WTRG | Benzinga

Essential Utilities Inc has a consensus price target of $44.67 based on the ratings of 11 analysts. The high is $54 issued by RBC Capital on March 16, 2023. The low is $38 issued by Barclays on December 17, 2025. The 3 most-recent analyst ratings were released by Barclays, Jefferies, and UBS on December 17, 2025, October 28, 2025, and October 28, 2025, respectively. With an average price target of $42.33 between Barclays, Jefferies, and UBS, there's an implied 6.55% upside for Essential Utilities Inc from these most-recent analyst ratings.

Analyst Trends and Forecast

Aug 25

Oct 25

Dec 25

Buy

Hold

Sell

Strong Sell

Analyst Rating and Forecast

3.4

Hold

Strong Buy

Buy

Hold

Sell

Strong Sell

Analyst Firms Making Recommendations¹

Barclays

Jefferies

UBS

Baird

Evercore ISI Group

¹calculated from analyst ratings

Analyst Ratings for Essential Utilities

	Buy Now						Get Alert
12/17/2025	Buy Now	-4.35%	Barclays	$43 → $38	Downgrade	Overweight → Underweight	Get Alert
10/28/2025	Buy Now	10.75%	Jefferies	$47 → $44	Downgrade	Buy → Hold	Get Alert
10/28/2025	Buy Now	13.26%	UBS	$46 → $45	Downgrade	Buy → Neutral	Get Alert
10/27/2025	Buy Now	—	Janney Montgomery Scott	—	Downgrade	Buy → Neutral	Get Alert
10/10/2025	Buy Now	8.23%	Barclays	$42 → $43	Maintains	Overweight	Get Alert
10/10/2025	Buy Now	18.3%	Jefferies	$43 → $47	Maintains	Buy	Get Alert
10/02/2025	Buy Now	5.71%	Barclays	→ $42	Initiates	→ Overweight	Get Alert
08/15/2025	Buy Now	18.3%	UBS	$42 → $47	Maintains	Buy	Get Alert
08/04/2025	Buy Now	18.3%	Baird	$46 → $47	Maintains	Outperform	Get Alert
05/13/2025	Buy Now	15.78%	Baird	$47 → $46	Maintains	Outperform	Get Alert
04/04/2025	Buy Now	18.3%	Baird	$46 → $47	Maintains	Outperform	Get Alert
03/05/2025	Buy Now	15.78%	Evercore ISI Group	$45 → $46	Maintains	Outperform	Get Alert
02/27/2025	Buy Now	3.2%	Wells Fargo	$39 → $41	Maintains	Equal-Weight	Get Alert
01/28/2025	Buy Now	3.2%	Jefferies	$41 → $41	Upgrade	Hold → Buy	Get Alert
01/14/2025	Buy Now	5.71%	UBS	$45 → $42	Maintains	Buy	Get Alert
01/07/2025	Buy Now	-1.84%	Wells Fargo	$43 → $39	Downgrade	Overweight → Equal-Weight	Get Alert
11/07/2024	Buy Now	3.2%	Jefferies	$44 → $41	Downgrade	Buy → Hold	Get Alert
11/06/2024	Buy Now	15.78%	Baird	$45 → $46	Maintains	Outperform	Get Alert
11/05/2024	Buy Now	8.23%	Wells Fargo	$45 → $43	Maintains	Overweight	Get Alert
10/07/2024	Buy Now	10.75%	Jefferies	→ $44	Initiates	→ Buy	Get Alert
09/20/2024	Buy Now	13.26%	B of A Securities	→ $45	Reinstates	→ Buy	Get Alert
08/08/2024	Buy Now	13.26%	Evercore ISI Group	$42 → $45	Maintains	Outperform	Get Alert
08/07/2024	Buy Now	13.26%	Baird	$43 → $45	Maintains	Outperform	Get Alert
07/31/2024	Buy Now	13.26%	Wells Fargo	$42 → $45	Maintains	Overweight	Get Alert
05/06/2024	Buy Now	8.23%	Baird	$44 → $43	Maintains	Outperform	Get Alert
03/04/2024	Buy Now	5.71%	Evercore ISI Group	$51 → $42	Maintains	Outperform	Get Alert
11/03/2023	Buy Now	—	Edward Jones	—	Upgrade	Hold → Buy	Get Alert
10/04/2023	Buy Now	13.26%	UBS	$46 → $45	Maintains	Buy	Get Alert
09/28/2023	Buy Now	5.71%	Northcoast Research	→ $42	Upgrade	Neutral → Buy	Get Alert
05/18/2023	Buy Now	—	Northcoast Research	—	Downgrade	Buy → Neutral	Get Alert
05/10/2023	Buy Now	25.85%	Wells Fargo	$52 → $50	Maintains	Overweight	Get Alert
03/16/2023	Buy Now	35.92%	RBC Capital	→ $54	Reiterates	→ Outperform	Get Alert
02/28/2023	Buy Now	30.88%	Wells Fargo	$53 → $52	Maintains	Overweight	Get Alert

FAQ

What is the target price for Essential Utilities (WTRG) stock?

The latest price target for Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG) was reported by Barclays on December 17, 2025. The analyst firm set a price target for $38.00 expecting WTRG to fall to within 12 months (a possible -4.35% downside). 13 analyst firms have reported ratings in the last year.

What is the most recent analyst rating for Essential Utilities (WTRG)?

The latest analyst rating for Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG) was provided by Barclays, and Essential Utilities downgraded their underweight rating.

When was the last upgrade for Essential Utilities (WTRG)?

The last upgrade for Essential Utilities Inc happened on January 28, 2025 when Jefferies raised their price target to $41. Jefferies previously had a hold for Essential Utilities Inc.

When was the last downgrade for Essential Utilities (WTRG)?

The last downgrade for Essential Utilities Inc happened on December 17, 2025 when Barclays changed their price target from $43 to $38 for Essential Utilities Inc.

When is the next analyst rating going to be posted or updated for Essential Utilities (WTRG)?

Analysts arrive at stock ratings after doing extensive research, which includes going through public financial statements, talking to executives and customers of Essential Utilities, and listening in to earnings conference calls. Most analysts do this every three months, so you should get 4 ratings per company per firm each year. The last rating for Essential Utilities was filed on December 17, 2025 so you should expect the next rating to be made available sometime around December 17, 2026.

Is the Analyst Rating Essential Utilities (WTRG) correct?

While ratings are subjective and will change, the latest Essential Utilities (WTRG) rating was a downgraded with a price target of $43.00 to $38.00. The current price Essential Utilities (WTRG) is trading at is $39.73, which is out of the analyst’s predicted range.