Magellan Asset Management Ltd Lowers Position in California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT)

Magellan Asset Management Ltd decreased its holdings in shares of California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT) by 2.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 46,248 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 1,059 shares during the period. Magellan Asset Management Ltd’s holdings in California Water Service Group were worth $2,096,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of CWT. Parkworth Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of California Water Service Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $50,000. Millstone Evans Group LLC purchased a new stake in California Water Service Group during the fourth quarter worth $102,000. Penn Mutual Asset Management bought a new stake in California Water Service Group during the 3rd quarter valued at $239,000. Virtu Financial LLC bought a new stake in California Water Service Group during the 4th quarter valued at $200,000. Finally, Ieq Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of California Water Service Group in the 4th quarter valued at $202,000. Institutional investors own 82.78% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on CWT shares. Bank of America started coverage on California Water Service Group in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. They set a “buy” rating and a $57.00 price objective for the company. StockNews.com raised shares of California Water Service Group from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 8th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of California Water Service Group from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and cut their price objective for the stock from $56.00 to $52.00 in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, California Water Service Group currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $53.25.

California Water Service Group Trading Down 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE:CWT opened at $48.55 on Thursday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $45.97 and its 200 day moving average is $48.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 0.64 and a quick ratio of 0.60. California Water Service Group has a 1 year low of $41.64 and a 1 year high of $56.25. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.03, a P/E/G ratio of 0.46 and a beta of 0.49.

California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 27th. The utilities provider reported $0.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.38 by ($0.05). The company had revenue of $222.20 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $216.37 million. California Water Service Group had a net margin of 19.56% and a return on equity of 13.24%. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.52 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that California Water Service Group will post 3.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

California Water Service Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 21st. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 10th were paid a dividend of $0.30 per share. This is a positive change from California Water Service Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 10th. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.47%. California Water Service Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 36.70%.

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.