Cbre Investment Management Listed Real Assets LLC Grows Stock Holdings in California Water Service Group $CWT

Key Points

• Cbre Investment Management Listed Real Assets LLC increased its holdings in California Water Service Group by 8.0%, owning approximately 1.18% of the company valued at $33.9 million.
• CWT's quarterly earnings report showed earnings per share of $0.71, surpassing analysts’ expectations of $0.46, with revenue of $264.95 million, up 8.5% from the previous year.
• The stock has a current average target price of $56.00, with ratings including one "Strong Buy" and two "Buy" from analysts, indicating a generally positive outlook.

Cbre Investment Management Listed Real Assets LLC raised its position in shares of California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT - Free Report) by 8.0% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 700,564 shares of the utilities provider's stock after buying an additional 52,158 shares during the period. Cbre Investment Management Listed Real Assets LLC owned about 1.18% of California Water Service Group worth $33,949,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its holdings in California Water Service Group by 2.6% in the first quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 10,806 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $524,000 after purchasing an additional 272 shares during the period. Choreo LLC raised its stake in California Water Service Group by 6.6% in the first quarter. Choreo LLC now owns 4,766 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $231,000 after buying an additional 294 shares in the last quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC raised its stake in California Water Service Group by 1.0% in the first quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 38,438 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,863,000 after buying an additional 373 shares in the last quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System raised its stake in California Water Service Group by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 55,060 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $2,496,000 after buying an additional 418 shares in the last quarter. Finally, PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its stake in California Water Service Group by 8.9% in the first quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 7,075 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $343,000 after buying an additional 577 shares in the last quarter. 82.78% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CWT has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on California Water Service Group from $59.00 to $55.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Wall Street Zen upgraded California Water Service Group from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 2nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and two have issued a Buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $56.00.

California Water Service Group Stock Performance

Shares of CWT stock opened at $47.5690 on Friday. California Water Service Group has a 52-week low of $41.64 and a 52-week high of $56.25. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $46.03 and its 200 day moving average price is $46.90. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.83 billion, a PE ratio of 20.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.23 and a beta of 0.66. The company has a quick ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 0.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67.

California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 31st. The utilities provider reported $0.71 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.46 by $0.25. California Water Service Group had a return on equity of 8.28% and a net margin of 13.71%.The company had revenue of $264.95 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $238.20 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.70 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, 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 firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 22nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 11th were issued a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 11th. California Water Service Group's payout ratio is currently 52.40%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Lester A. Snow sold 1,200 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.51, for a total transaction of $55,812.00. Following the sale, the director owned 26,349 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,225,491.99. The trade was a 4.36% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.77% of the company's stock.

California Water Service Group 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.

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