SJW Group (NYSE:SJW) Short Interest Update

SJW Group (NYSE:SJW) was the target of a significant decrease in short interest in the month of February. As of February 15th, there was short interest totalling 343,900 shares, a decrease of 44.8% from the January 31st total of 623,300 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 275,300 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 1.2 days.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Bank of America raised SJW Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and decreased their target price for the company from $59.00 to $55.00 in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. StockNews.com raised shares of SJW Group from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of SJW Group from $53.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday.

SJW Group Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE SJW opened at $54.35 on Tuesday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $49.92 and its 200 day simple moving average is $54.31. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.69, a PEG ratio of 3.94 and a beta of 0.65. The company has a quick ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25. SJW Group has a 52-week low of $44.91 and a 52-week high of $62.18.

SJW Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 3rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 10th were issued a dividend of $0.42 per share. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.09%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 10th. This is an increase from SJW Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. SJW Group’s payout ratio is presently 58.95%.

Institutional Trading of SJW Group

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. First Trust Advisors LP raised its holdings in shares of SJW Group by 197.0% during the fourth quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 1,317,721 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $64,858,000 after acquiring an additional 873,973 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new position in SJW Group during the 4th quarter worth approximately $10,255,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its stake in SJW Group by 131.4% during the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 153,687 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $7,564,000 after purchasing an additional 87,260 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of SJW Group by 2.8% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,617,642 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $128,840,000 after purchasing an additional 72,081 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nuance Investments LLC boosted its position in shares of SJW Group by 4.3% in the fourth quarter. Nuance Investments LLC now owns 1,256,548 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $61,872,000 after buying an additional 52,029 shares during the period. 84.29% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

SJW Group Company Profile

SJW Group, through its subsidiaries, provides water utility and other related services in the United States. It operates in Water Utility Services and Real Estate Services segments. The company engages in the production, purchase, storage, purification, distribution, wholesale, and retail sale of water and wastewater services; and supplies groundwater from wells, surface water from watershed run-off and diversion, reclaimed water, and imported water purchased from the Santa Clara Valley Water District.