Vanguard Group Inc. Cuts Position in California Water Service Group $CWT

Key Points

• Vanguard Group Inc. has reduced its stake in California Water Service Group by 1.7%, now holding approximately 7.38 million shares, which is valued at $357.8 million.
• California Water Service Group reported a quarterly EPS of $0.71, surpassing analysts' estimates by $0.25, with revenue of $264.95 million, an 8.5% year-over-year increase.
• The company recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.30 per share, representing an annualized dividend of $1.20 and a yield of 2.6%.

Vanguard Group Inc. lessened its position in shares of California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT - Free Report) by 1.7% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 7,383,463 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 131,246 shares during the quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. owned about 12.39% of California Water Service Group worth $357,803,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Versant Capital Management Inc grew 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 valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 601 shares in the last quarter. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise bought a new stake in shares of California Water Service Group in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Sterling Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of California Water Service Group by 785.8% in the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 1,435 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $65,000 after purchasing an additional 1,273 shares during the last quarter. Mather Group LLC. bought a new stake in shares of California Water Service Group in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $74,000. Finally, Putney Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of California Water Service Group in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $78,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.78% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently issued reports on CWT. Wall Street Zen raised California Water Service Group from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective 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. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and two have assigned a Buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $56.00.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Lester A. Snow sold 1,200 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.51, for a total transaction of $55,812.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 26,349 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,225,491.99. This trade represents a 4.36% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.77% of the company's stock.

California Water Service Group Trading Up 0.2%

Shares of CWT stock traded up $0.0950 on Thursday, reaching $46.7850. 230,477 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 345,799. California Water Service Group has a 52 week low of $41.64 and a 52 week high of $56.25. The company has a current ratio of 0.53, a quick ratio of 0.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.79 billion, a PE ratio of 20.43, a P/E/G ratio of 2.23 and a beta of 0.66. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $46.01 and its 200 day simple moving average is $46.88.

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

California Water Service Group Dividend Announcement

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

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.