California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT) Hits New 1-Year Low – Time to Sell?

California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT)’s share price hit a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $43.44 and last traded at $43.71, with a volume of 32514 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $44.36.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on CWT shares. StockNews.com raised California Water Service Group from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Bank of America started coverage on California Water Service Group in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. They set a “buy” rating and a $57.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of California Water Service Group from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and cut their target price for the company from $56.00 to $52.00 in a research note on Tuesday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $53.25.

California Water Service Group Stock Down 3.2 %

The firm has a market cap of $2.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.10 and a beta of 0.52. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $48.53 and a 200-day moving average price of $51.22. The company has a quick ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64.

California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The utilities provider reported $1.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.05 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $299.60 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $289.55 million. California Water Service Group had a net margin of 19.56% and a return on equity of 13.24%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 17.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.60 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that California Water Service Group will post 3.29 EPS for the current year.

California Water Service Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 22nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 12th were issued a $0.28 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, November 12th. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.67%. California Water Service Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 32.37%.

Insider Activity

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

Institutional Trading of California Water Service Group

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC lifted its stake in shares of California Water Service Group by 20.2% during the second quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 13,842 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $671,000 after purchasing an additional 2,327 shares in the last quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of California Water Service Group during the 2nd quarter valued at about $506,000. Arizona State Retirement System lifted its position in California Water Service Group by 1.8% during the 2nd quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 16,147 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $783,000 after acquiring an additional 287 shares in the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC boosted its holdings in California Water Service Group by 21,048.1% in the 2nd quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 5,710 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $277,000 after acquiring an additional 5,683 shares during the period. Finally, Choreo LLC acquired a new stake in California Water Service Group in the second quarter valued at approximately $231,000. 82.78% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.