California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT - Get Free Report) Director Lester A. Snow sold 1,200 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $46.51, for a total transaction of $55,812.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 26,349 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,225,491.99. This represents a 4.36% 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.
California Water Service Group Stock Down 0.8%
Shares of CWT opened at $46.32 on Friday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $48.18 and a 200-day simple moving average of $46.88. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.39, a P/E/G ratio of 0.46 and a beta of 0.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a current ratio of 0.64. California Water Service Group has a 52 week low of $41.64 and a 52 week high of $56.25.
California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The utilities provider reported $0.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.16 by $0.06. California Water Service Group had a net margin of 19.56% and a return on equity of 13.24%. The firm had revenue of $203.97 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $194.80 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.21 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was down 24.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts expect that California Water Service Group will post 3.15 earnings per share for the current year.
California Water Service Group Announces Dividend
The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 23rd. Investors of record on Monday, May 12th were given a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.59%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 12th. California Water Service Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 52.63%.
Wall Street Analyst Weigh In
Several research firms have weighed in on CWT. Wall Street Zen upgraded California Water Service Group from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, June 6th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on California Water Service Group from $54.00 to $59.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Seaport Res Ptn raised shares of California Water Service Group from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, April 11th.
Get Our Latest Analysis on CWT
Institutional Inflows and Outflows
Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. State of Alaska Department of Revenue grew its stake in California Water Service Group by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 33,800 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,532,000 after buying an additional 231 shares during the last quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System increased its holdings in shares of California Water Service Group by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 28,800 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,306,000 after purchasing an additional 400 shares in the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp increased its holdings in shares of California Water Service Group by 12.2% in the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 17,851 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $809,000 after purchasing an additional 1,942 shares in the last quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of California Water Service Group by 134.6% in the fourth quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. now owns 47,155 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $2,138,000 after purchasing an additional 27,058 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Asset Planning Inc acquired a new stake in shares of California Water Service Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $204,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.78% of the company's stock.
About California Water Service Group
(
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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.
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