Wall Street Zen Upgrades California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT) to "Hold"

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT - Free Report) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a report issued on Friday.

A number of other brokerages also recently issued reports on CWT. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded California Water Service Group from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on 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.

California Water Service Group Stock Up 1.2%

CWT stock traded up $0.54 during trading on Friday, reaching $46.16. The stock had a trading volume of 244,412 shares, compared to its average volume of 331,233. California Water Service Group has a one year low of $41.64 and a one year high of $56.25. 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 company's 50 day moving average is $48.30 and its two-hundred day moving average is $46.95. The company has a market capitalization of $2.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.34, a P/E/G ratio of 0.46 and a beta of 0.66.

California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The utilities provider reported $0.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 business had revenue of $203.97 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $194.80 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.21 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 24.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that California Water Service Group will post 3.15 EPS for the current year.

California Water Service Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 23rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 12th were given a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.60%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 12th. California Water Service Group's dividend payout ratio is currently 52.63%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of CWT. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its position in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 601 shares during the period. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise bought a new position in shares of California Water Service Group during the 1st quarter worth $34,000. Parkworth Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of California Water Service Group during the 4th quarter worth $50,000. Sterling Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of California Water Service Group by 785.8% during the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 1,435 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $65,000 after acquiring an additional 1,273 shares during the period. Finally, Mather Group LLC. bought a new position in shares of California Water Service Group during the 1st quarter worth $74,000. 82.78% of the stock is owned by 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.