Federated Hermes Inc. Has $2.35 Million Stake in California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT)

Key Points

• Federated Hermes Inc. significantly increased its stake in California Water Service Group by 2,361.8% during the first quarter, now holding approximately $2.35 million worth of shares.
• California Water Service Group reported a quarterly EPS of $0.71, surpassing analyst expectations, and achieved revenue of $264.95 million, which reflects an 8.5% year-over-year increase.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.30 per share, resulting in a 2.6% dividend yield for its stockholders.

Federated Hermes Inc. grew its stake in California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT - Free Report) by 2,361.8% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 48,473 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 46,504 shares during the quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. owned about 0.08% of California Water Service Group worth $2,349,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. First Trust Advisors LP lifted its stake in California Water Service Group by 4.9% in the fourth quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 1,689,977 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $76,607,000 after buying an additional 79,658 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of California Water Service Group by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,360,158 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $61,670,000 after acquiring an additional 22,192 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp raised its position in shares of California Water Service Group by 13.1% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 979,138 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $44,384,000 after acquiring an additional 113,622 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. boosted its stake in California Water Service Group by 5.6% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 928,148 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $42,073,000 after acquiring an additional 49,107 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nuveen Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in California Water Service Group by 5.1% during the 4th quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC now owns 317,419 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $14,389,000 after acquiring an additional 15,405 shares during the last quarter. 82.78% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CWT has been the topic of several analyst reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of California Water Service Group from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, August 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of California Water Service Group from $59.00 to $55.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Finally, Seaport Res Ptn raised 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 Stock Down 0.1%

Shares of CWT traded down $0.06 on Friday, hitting $46.82. The company's stock had a trading volume of 243,768 shares, compared to its average volume of 370,939. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $45.96 and its 200-day moving average price is $46.74. California Water Service Group has a fifty-two week low of $41.64 and a fifty-two week high of $56.25. The company has a quick ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 0.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.45, a P/E/G ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 0.66.

California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results 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 net margin of 13.71% and a return on equity of 8.28%. The firm 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 firm posted $0.70 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that California Water Service Group will post 3.15 EPS for the current year.

California Water Service Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 22nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 11th will be paid a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 11th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.6%. California Water Service Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 52.40%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Lester A. Snow sold 1,200 shares of the business'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 sale, the director directly owned 26,349 shares in the company, valued at $1,225,491.99. The trade was a 4.36% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.77% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.