First National Corp MA ADV Increases Position in California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT)

First National Corp MA ADV lifted its stake in California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT - Free Report) by 121.4% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 49,153 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 26,956 shares during the period. First National Corp MA ADV owned about 0.08% of California Water Service Group worth $2,382,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Parallel Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in California Water Service Group by 686.4% in the first 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 period. 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 worth $2,010,000 after buying an additional 40,500 shares during the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted 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 worth $33,000 after buying an additional 601 shares during the last quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System lifted its holdings in California Water Service Group by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 55,060 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $2,496,000 after buying an additional 418 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its holdings in California Water Service Group by 75.8% during the 4th quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 10,534 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $477,000 after buying an additional 4,542 shares during the last quarter. 82.78% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

California Water Service Group Stock Performance

CWT stock traded down $0.29 during trading on Friday, hitting $45.56. The company had a trading volume of 241,760 shares, compared to its average volume of 331,582. The firm has a market cap of $2.71 billion, a PE ratio of 13.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.46 and a beta of 0.66. California Water Service Group has a 1-year low of $41.64 and a 1-year high of $56.25. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $48.35 and a 200-day moving average price of $46.99. The company has a quick ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64.

California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results 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 return on equity of 13.24% and a net margin of 19.56%. 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 business posted $1.21 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 24.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts expect that California Water Service Group will post 3.15 earnings per share for the current year.

California Water Service Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 23rd. Investors of record on Monday, May 12th were given a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.63%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 12th. California Water Service Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 52.63%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have issued reports on CWT shares. Seaport Res Ptn raised California Water Service Group from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Friday, April 11th. Wall Street Zen raised California Water Service Group from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on California Water Service Group from $54.00 to $59.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd.

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.