California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT) Given Average Recommendation of "Buy" by Analysts

Shares of California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT - Get Free Report) have been given an average rating of "Buy" by the three analysts that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price target among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $58.00.

Several research firms have issued reports on CWT. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded shares of California Water Service Group from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of California Water Service Group from $54.00 to $59.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of California Water Service Group from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Saturday, May 24th.

Institutional Trading of California Water Service Group

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of CWT. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its stake in California Water Service Group by 751.3% in the first quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 681 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 601 shares in the last quarter. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise bought a new position in California Water Service Group in the first quarter worth about $34,000. Parkworth Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in California Water Service Group in the fourth quarter worth about $50,000. Sterling Capital Management LLC raised its stake in California Water Service Group by 785.8% in the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 1,435 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $65,000 after buying an additional 1,273 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mather Group LLC. bought a new position in California Water Service Group in the first quarter worth about $74,000. 82.78% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

California Water Service Group Price Performance

Shares of California Water Service Group stock traded down $0.89 during trading on Friday, hitting $45.72. The stock had a trading volume of 236,072 shares, compared to its average volume of 330,567. The firm has a market cap of $2.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.21, a P/E/G ratio of 0.46 and a beta of 0.70. California Water Service Group has a 12 month low of $41.64 and a 12 month high of $56.25. The business's 50-day moving average is $48.47 and its 200 day moving average is $47.12. The company has a current ratio of 0.64, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64.

California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT - Get Free Report) last announced its 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 company had revenue of $203.97 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $194.80 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.21 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 24.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that California Water Service Group will post 3.15 earnings per share for the current year.

California Water Service Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 23rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 12th were issued a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 12th. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.62%. California Water Service Group's dividend payout ratio is currently 52.63%.

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.