California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT) Rating Increased to Hold at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday.

A number of other analysts also recently issued reports on the stock. Bank of America started coverage on shares of California Water Service Group in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $57.00 price target on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company raised California Water Service Group from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $56.00 to $52.00 in a report on Tuesday. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, California Water Service Group presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $53.25.

California Water Service Group Price Performance

Shares of California Water Service Group stock opened at $43.26 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $2.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.50 and a beta of 0.52. The company has a quick ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $48.70 and its 200-day simple moving average is $51.27. California Water Service Group has a 52 week low of $42.31 and a 52 week high of $56.25.

California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The utilities provider reported $1.03 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.05 by ($0.02). California Water Service Group had a return on equity of 13.24% and a net margin of 19.56%. The business had revenue of $299.60 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $289.55 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.60 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 17.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts expect that California Water Service Group will post 3.29 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

California Water Service Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 22nd. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 12th were given a $0.28 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, November 12th. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.59%. California Water Service Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 32.37%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other California Water Service Group news, VP Michael B. Luu sold 985 shares of California Water Service Group stock in a transaction on Friday, November 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.50, for a total transaction of $50,727.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 20,354 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,048,231. The trade was a 4.62 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.73% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On California Water Service Group

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Blue Trust Inc. grew its holdings in California Water Service Group by 255.6% during the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 505 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 363 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in shares of California Water Service Group by 50.2% during the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,236 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $67,000 after buying an additional 413 shares during the last quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of California Water Service Group in the second quarter worth approximately $85,000. nVerses Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of California Water Service Group during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $119,000. Finally, CWM LLC boosted its holdings in California Water Service Group by 129.1% during the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 3,090 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $168,000 after acquiring an additional 1,741 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 82.78% of the company’s stock.

About California Water Service Group

California Water Service Group, through its subsidiaries, provides water utility and other related services in California, Washington, New Mexico, Hawaii, and Texas. The company is involved in the production, purchase, storage, treatment, testing, distribution, and sale of water for domestic, industrial, public, and irrigation uses, as well as for fire protection services.