California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT) Stock Holdings Decreased by Ameriprise Financial Inc.

Ameriprise Financial Inc. lowered its stake in California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT) by 6.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 149,767 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 11,100 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. owned 0.25% of California Water Service Group worth $6,789,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Parkworth Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of California Water Service Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $50,000. Sterling Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings 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 buying an additional 1,273 shares during the period. Federated Hermes Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of 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 buying an additional 426 shares during the period. Millstone Evans Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of California Water Service Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $102,000. Finally, GeoWealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of California Water Service Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $124,000. Institutional investors own 82.78% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently commented on CWT. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of California Water Service Group from $54.00 to $59.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Wall Street Zen raised shares of California Water Service Group from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Finally, Seaport Res Ptn raised shares of California Water Service Group from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, April 11th.

California Water Service Group Trading Down 1.1%

California Water Service Group stock opened at $46.88 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $48.41 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $47.40. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.55, a PEG ratio of 0.46 and a beta of 0.70. California Water Service Group has a 52-week low of $41.64 and a 52-week high of $56.25.

California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The utilities provider reported $0.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.16 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $203.97 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $194.80 million. California Water Service Group had a net margin of 19.56% and a return on equity of 13.24%. California Water Service Group’s revenue was down 24.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.21 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect 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 announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 23rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 12th will be paid a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.56%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 12th. California Water Service Group’s payout ratio is 52.63%.

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.