Vanguard Trims Essential Utilities Stake to 12.86%

TL;DR

**Vanguard cut its stake in Essential Utilities to 12.86%.**

AI Summary

The Vanguard Group, a major investment firm, filed an amended SC 13G/A on February 13, 2024, disclosing its ownership of 34,705,798 shares of Essential Utilities Inc. common stock as of December 29, 2023. This represents 12.86% of the company's outstanding shares, a slight decrease from its previous reported stake. This matters to investors because Vanguard is a significant institutional holder, and changes in its position can signal shifts in institutional sentiment or portfolio rebalancing for this utility company.

Why It Matters

This filing shows that a major institutional investor, Vanguard, has slightly reduced its ownership in Essential Utilities, which could indicate a minor shift in their investment strategy or a rebalancing of their index funds.

Risk Assessment

Risk Level: low — A minor adjustment by a large institutional investor like Vanguard typically has a low direct risk impact on the stock, as it's often part of routine portfolio management.

Analyst Insight

Investors should note Vanguard's slight reduction in stake, but recognize that as a passive index fund manager, such changes are often due to rebalancing rather than a specific bearish outlook on Essential Utilities Inc. It's a data point, not necessarily a strong buy/sell signal.

Key Numbers

• 34,705,798 — Shares Owned (The total number of Essential Utilities Inc. common shares beneficially owned by The Vanguard Group.)
• 12.86% — Ownership Percentage (The percentage of Essential Utilities Inc. common stock owned by The Vanguard Group, indicating a significant institutional stake.)

Key Players & Entities

• The Vanguard Group (company) — reporting person and institutional investor
• Essential Utilities Inc. (company) — subject company whose shares are being reported
• 34,705,798 (dollar_amount) — number of shares of common stock beneficially owned by Vanguard
• 12.86% (dollar_amount) — percentage of Essential Utilities Inc. common stock owned by Vanguard
• December 29, 2023 (date) — date of the event requiring the filing

Forward-Looking Statements

• Vanguard will continue to hold a significant, albeit potentially fluctuating, stake in Essential Utilities Inc. due to its nature as a utility company often included in index funds. (The Vanguard Group) — high confidence, target: December 31, 2024

FAQ

From the Filing

0001104659-24-020051.txt : 20240213 0001104659-24-020051.hdr.sgml : 20240213 20240213165558 ACCESSION NUMBER: 0001104659-24-020051 CONFORMED SUBMISSION TYPE: SC 13G/A PUBLIC DOCUMENT COUNT: 1 FILED AS OF DATE: 20240213 DATE AS OF CHANGE: 20240213 SUBJECT COMPANY: COMPANY DATA: COMPANY CONFORMED NAME: Essential Utilities, Inc. CENTRAL INDEX KEY: 0000078128 STANDARD INDUSTRIAL CLASSIFICATION: WATER SUPPLY [4941] ORGANIZATION NAME: 01 Energy & Transportation IRS NUMBER: 231702594 STATE OF INCORPORATION: PA FISCAL YEAR END: 1231 FILING VALUES: FORM TYPE: SC 13G/A SEC ACT: 1934 Act SEC FILE NUMBER: 005-31978 FILM NUMBER: 24627236 BUSINESS ADDRESS: STREET 1: 762 W. LANCASTER AVE CITY: BRYN MAWR STATE: PA ZIP: 19010-3489 BUSINESS PHONE: 610-527-8000 MAIL ADDRESS: STREET 1: 762 W. LANCASTER AVE CITY: BRYN MAWR STATE: PA ZIP: 19010-3489 FORMER COMPANY: FORMER CONFORMED NAME: AQUA AMERICA INC DATE OF NAME CHANGE: 20040120 FORMER COMPANY: FORMER CONFORMED NAME: PHILADELPHIA SUBURBAN CORP DATE OF NAME CHANGE: 19920703 FILED BY: COMPANY DATA: COMPANY CONFORMED NAME: VANGUARD GROUP INC CENTRAL INDEX KEY: 0000102909 ORGANIZATION NAME: IRS NUMBER: 231945930 STATE OF INCORPORATION: PA FISCAL YEAR END: 1231 FILING VALUES: FORM TYPE: SC 13G/A BUSINESS ADDRESS: STREET 1: PO BOX 2600 STREET 2: V26 CITY: VALLEY FORGE STATE: PA ZIP: 19482-2600 BUSINESS PHONE: 6106691000 MAIL ADDRESS: STREET 1: PO BOX 2600 STREET 2: V26 CITY: VALLEY FORGE STATE: PA ZIP: 19482-2600 SC 13G/A 1 tv0059-essentialutilitiesinc.htm SCHEDULE 13G/A essentialutilitiesinc SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION Washington, D.C. 20549 Schedule 13G Under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (Amendment No.: 14)* Name of issuer:  Essential Utilities Inc Title of Class of Securities:  Common Stock CUSIP Number:  29670G102 Date of Event Which Requires Filing of this Statement: December 29, 2023 Check the appropriate box to designate the rule pursuant to which this Schedule is filed: ☒ Rule 13d-1(b) ☐ Rule 13d-1(c) ☐ Rule 13d-1(d) *The remainder of this cover page shall be filled out for a reporting person's initial filing on this form with respect to the subject class of securities, and for any subsequent amendment containing information which would alter the disclosures provided in a prior cover page. The information required in the remainder of this cover page shall not be deemed to be "filed" for the purpose of Section 18 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 ("Act") or otherwise subject to the liabilities of that section of the Act but shall be subject to all other provisions of the Act (however, see the Notes). (Continued on the following page(s))     13G CUSIP No.:  29670G102 1.  NAME OF REPORTING PERSON I.R.S. IDENTIFICATION NO. OF ABOVE PERSON The Vanguard Group - 23-1945930 2.  CHECK THE APPROPRIATE [LINE] IF A MEMBER OF A GROUP A.  B.  X 3.  SEC USE ONLY 4.  CITIZENSHIP OF PLACE OF ORGANIZATION Pennsylvania (For questions 5-8, report the number of shares beneficially owned by each reporting person with:) 5.  SOLE VOTING POWER 0 6.  SHARED VOTING POWER 248,760 7.  SOLE DISPOSITIVE POWER 27,536,540 8.  SHARED DISPOSITIVE POWER 452,453 9.  AGGREGATE AMOUNT BENEFICIALLY OWNED BY EACH REPORTING PERSON 27,988,993 10.  CHECK BOX IF THE AGGREGATE AMOUNT IN ROW (9) EXCLUDES CERTAIN SHARES N/A 11.  PERCENT OF CLASS REPRESENTED BY AMOUNT IN ROW 9 10.25% 12.  TYPE OF REPORTING PERSON IA     SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION Washington, D.C. 20549 Schedule 13G Under the Securities Act of 1934 Item 1(a) - Name of Issuer: Essential Utilities Inc Item 1(b) - Address of Issuer's Principal Executive Offices: 762 West Lancaster Avenue Bryn Mawr, PA 19010-3489 Item 2(a) - Name of Person Filing: The Vanguard Group - 23-1945930 Item 2(b) – Address of Principal Business Office or, if none