Voya Investment Management LLC Cuts Stock Holdings in California Water Service Group $CWT

Voya Investment Management LLC lessened its stake in California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT) by 8.5% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 16,572 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 1,545 shares during the period. Voya Investment Management LLC’s holdings in California Water Service Group were worth $803,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its holdings in California Water Service Group by 751.3% in the first 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 acquired a new position in California Water Service Group during the 1st quarter worth $34,000. Mather Group LLC. acquired a new position in shares of California Water Service Group in the 1st quarter valued at about $74,000. Spirit of America Management Corp NY acquired a new position in California Water Service Group during the 1st quarter valued at about $97,000. Finally, State of Wyoming raised its position in shares of California Water Service Group by 136.4% during the 4th quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 2,291 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $104,000 after buying an additional 1,322 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.78% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CWT has been the subject of several recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of California Water Service Group from $59.00 to $55.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of California Water Service Group from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 2nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and two have given a Buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $56.00.

California Water Service Group Stock Up 0.1%

NYSE:CWT opened at $45.75 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $2.73 billion, a PE ratio of 19.98, a P/E/G ratio of 2.18 and a beta of 0.69. California Water Service Group has a one year low of $41.64 and a one year high of $54.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 0.53 and a quick ratio of 0.50. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $46.11 and its 200 day simple moving average is $46.99.

California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The utilities provider reported $0.71 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.46 by $0.25. The business had revenue of $264.95 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $238.20 million. California Water Service Group had a net margin of 13.71% and a return on equity of 8.28%. California Water Service Group’s quarterly revenue was up 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.70 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that California Water Service Group will post 3.15 earnings per share for the current year.

California Water Service Group Announces Dividend

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

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.