California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT) Lowered to "Sell" Rating by Wall Street Zen

California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT - Get Free Report) was downgraded by analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report issued on Saturday.

A number of other brokerages have also recently issued reports on CWT. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of California Water Service Group from $54.00 to $59.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Seaport Res Ptn raised shares of California Water Service Group from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Friday, April 11th.

California Water Service Group Price Performance

CWT stock traded up $0.41 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $46.84. The company had a trading volume of 343,787 shares, compared to its average volume of 332,520. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 0.64 and a quick ratio of 0.60. California Water Service Group has a 1 year low of $41.64 and a 1 year high of $56.25. The company has a market capitalization of $2.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.54, a P/E/G ratio of 0.46 and a beta of 0.70. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $48.47 and a 200-day moving average price of $47.23.

California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The utilities provider reported $0.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates 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 analysts' expectations of $194.80 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.21 EPS. The firm's revenue was down 24.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts anticipate that California Water Service Group will post 3.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On California Water Service Group

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its holdings in California Water Service Group by 751.3% during the 1st quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 681 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 601 shares during the last quarter. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise bought a new position in California Water Service Group in the 1st quarter worth $34,000. Parkworth Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in California Water Service Group in the 4th quarter worth $50,000. Sterling Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in California Water Service Group by 785.8% in the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 1,435 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $65,000 after purchasing an additional 1,273 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mather Group LLC. bought a new position in California Water Service Group in the 1st quarter worth $74,000. 82.78% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

California Water Service Group Company Profile

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.