Exchange Traded Concepts LLC Buys 24,182 Shares of California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT)

Exchange Traded Concepts LLC boosted its holdings in shares of California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT - Free Report) by 97.8% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 48,918 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 24,182 shares during the period. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC owned about 0.08% of California Water Service Group worth $2,371,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its holdings in shares of California Water Service Group by 2.6% during the first quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 10,806 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $524,000 after acquiring an additional 272 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its holdings in California Water Service Group by 79.8% during the 1st quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 56,109 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $2,719,000 after purchasing an additional 24,904 shares during the last quarter. First National Corp MA ADV lifted its holdings in California Water Service Group by 121.4% during the 1st quarter. First National Corp MA ADV now owns 49,153 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $2,382,000 after purchasing an additional 26,956 shares during the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in California Water Service Group by 686.4% during the 1st quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 2,548 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $123,000 after purchasing an additional 2,224 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in California Water Service Group by 4,124.2% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 41,482 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $2,010,000 after purchasing an additional 40,500 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 82.78% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CWT has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Wall Street Zen cut shares of California Water Service Group from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Saturday. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded California Water Service Group from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on 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.

California Water Service Group Price Performance

Shares of California Water Service Group stock traded up $0.40 during trading on Friday, reaching $46.48. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,093,726 shares, compared to its average volume of 334,205. California Water Service Group has a one year low of $41.64 and a one year high of $56.25. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 0.66. The company has a current ratio of 0.53, a quick ratio of 0.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $47.96 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $46.71.

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 for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.16 by $0.06. California Water Service Group had a net margin of 13.84% and a return on equity of 8.32%. The company had revenue of $203.97 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $194.80 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.21 earnings per share. The company's revenue was down 24.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that California Water Service Group will post 3.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

California Water Service Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 23rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 12th were given a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.58%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 12th. California Water Service Group's payout ratio is 52.63%.

Insider Buying and Selling at California Water Service Group

In related news, Director Lester A. Snow sold 1,200 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.51, for a total value of $55,812.00. Following the completion of the sale, 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 document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 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.