California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT) Shares Acquired by New Age Alpha Advisors LLC

Key Points

• New Age Alpha Advisors LLC increased its stake in California Water Service Group by 17.2%, acquiring an additional 16,851 shares, bringing its total holdings to 114,885 shares worth approximately $5.57 million.
• California Water Service Group reported strong financial results, with $0.71 EPS for the quarter, surpassing analysts' expectations of $0.46 and marking an 8.5% year-over-year revenue increase.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.30, translating to a 2.6% yield, with a payout ratio of 52.40% and the dividend distribution scheduled for August 22nd.

New Age Alpha Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT - Free Report) by 17.2% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 114,885 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 16,851 shares during the quarter. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC owned approximately 0.19% of California Water Service Group worth $5,567,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Wall Street Zen raised 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 target price on California Water Service Group from $59.00 to $55.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Finally, Seaport Res Ptn upgraded shares of California Water Service Group from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Friday, April 11th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Lester A. Snow sold 1,200 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 12th. The shares were 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 position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.77% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

California Water Service Group Price Performance

NYSE CWT traded down $0.06 on Friday, reaching $46.82. 243,768 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 370,939. The stock has a market cap of $2.79 billion, a PE ratio of 20.45, a P/E/G ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 0.66. California Water Service Group has a 12 month low of $41.64 and a 12 month high of $56.25. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $45.96 and a 200 day simple moving average of $46.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 0.53 and a quick ratio of 0.50.

California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The utilities provider reported $0.71 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.46 by $0.25. The company had revenue of $264.95 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $238.20 million. California Water Service Group had a net margin of 13.71% and a return on equity of 8.28%. California Water Service Group's revenue for the quarter was up 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.70 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that California Water Service Group will post 3.15 earnings per share for the current year.

California Water Service Group Dividend Announcement

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

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.