Northstar Asset Management Inc. Acquires 6,686 Shares of California Water Service Group $CWT

Key Points

• Northstar Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in California Water Service Group by 7.0%, acquiring an additional 6,686 shares, bringing its total holdings to 101,529 shares.
• California Water Service Group recently reported $0.71 EPS for the quarter, exceeding analyst expectations of $0.46 EPS and showing an 8.5% year-over-year revenue increase.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.30 per share, representing a 2.6% dividend yield, with the ex-dividend date set for August 11th.

Northstar Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT - Free Report) by 7.0% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 101,529 shares of the utilities provider's stock after acquiring an additional 6,686 shares during the quarter. California Water Service Group makes up approximately 1.5% of Northstar Asset Management Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 29th largest position. Northstar Asset Management Inc. owned 0.17% of California Water Service Group worth $4,920,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. LPL Financial LLC boosted its position in shares of California Water Service Group by 10.9% during the 4th quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 21,540 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $976,000 after purchasing an additional 2,116 shares in the last quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN lifted its position in California Water Service Group by 8.6% in the 4th quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 62,044 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $2,812,000 after acquiring an additional 4,903 shares in the last quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. lifted its position in California Water Service Group by 27.6% in the 4th quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 1,969 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $89,000 after acquiring an additional 426 shares in the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC bought a new stake in California Water Service Group in the 4th quarter worth about $2,085,000. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in California Water Service Group in the 4th quarter worth about $4,704,000. 82.78% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

California Water Service Group Stock Performance

NYSE:CWT traded up $0.78 on Friday, reaching $47.55. 98,789 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 366,159. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 0.53 and a quick ratio of 0.50. The firm has a market cap of $2.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.77, a P/E/G ratio of 2.23 and a beta of 0.66. California Water Service Group has a 52 week low of $41.64 and a 52 week high of $56.25. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $46.01 and a 200-day simple moving average of $46.88.

California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT - Get Free Report) last issued 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 firm 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%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.70 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side 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 company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 22nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 11th will be issued a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 11th. California Water Service Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 52.40%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other California Water Service Group news, Director Lester A. Snow sold 1,200 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $46.51, for a total value of $55,812.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 26,349 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,225,491.99. This trade represents a 4.36% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.77% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have issued reports on CWT. Wall Street Zen raised shares of California Water Service Group from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research 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 on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and two have issued a Buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $56.00.

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.