California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT) Reaches New 1-Year High on Strong Earnings

California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT)’s stock price reached a new 52-week high during trading on Friday following a better than expected earnings announcement. The company traded as high as $54.92 and last traded at $54.57, with a volume of 37695 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $53.88.

The utilities provider reported $0.70 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.42 by $0.28. The company had revenue of $244.30 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $216.25 million. California Water Service Group had a return on equity of 10.09% and a net margin of 15.42%. The company’s revenue was up 25.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.17 EPS.

California Water Service Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 23rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 12th will be issued a $0.28 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 12th. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.06%. California Water Service Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 44.80%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on CWT shares. StockNews.com upgraded shares of California Water Service Group from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, April 26th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded California Water Service Group from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $50.00 to $57.00 in a research report on Wednesday. UBS Group upgraded shares of California Water Service Group from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $49.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. Finally, Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on shares of California Water Service Group from $52.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, April 26th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $53.67.

Insider Transactions at California Water Service Group

In related news, Director Thomas M. Krummel sold 1,654 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.07, for a total transaction of $82,815.78. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 24,171 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,210,241.97. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other California Water Service Group news, Director Thomas M. Krummel sold 1,654 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.07, for a total transaction of $82,815.78. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 24,171 shares in the company, valued at $1,210,241.97. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Thomas M. Krummel sold 555 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $52.99, for a total value of $29,409.45. Following the sale, the director now owns 23,616 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,251,411.84. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 2,764 shares of company stock valued at $141,785. 0.73% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. AdvisorNet Financial Inc boosted its holdings in shares of California Water Service Group by 42.2% in the 4th quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 741 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 220 shares during the period. Quadrature Capital Ltd boosted its stake in California Water Service Group by 4.6% during the first quarter. Quadrature Capital Ltd now owns 6,661 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $309,000 after buying an additional 295 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in California Water Service Group by 109.9% during the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 823 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 431 shares during the last quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System raised its stake in shares of California Water Service Group by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System now owns 69,575 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $3,609,000 after acquiring an additional 442 shares during the period. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of California Water Service Group by 11.5% in the 4th quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 4,662 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $242,000 after acquiring an additional 481 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 82.78% of the company’s stock.

California Water Service Group Stock Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $3.15 billion, a PE ratio of 21.54 and a beta of 0.47. The business’s 50 day moving average is $49.76 and its 200 day moving average is $48.19. The company has a current ratio of 0.56, a quick ratio of 0.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72.

California Water Service Group Company 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.