California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT) Shares Sold by American Century Companies Inc.

American Century Companies Inc. reduced its holdings in shares of California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT - Free Report) by 39.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 89,377 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 58,556 shares during the quarter. American Century Companies Inc. owned 0.15% of California Water Service Group worth $4,051,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Cerity Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of California Water Service Group by 38.1% during the 3rd quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 11,270 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $611,000 after buying an additional 3,107 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC increased its stake in California Water Service Group by 70.5% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 63,625 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $3,450,000 after acquiring an additional 26,299 shares during the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its holdings in California Water Service Group by 9.3% during the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 27,181 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,474,000 after buying an additional 2,316 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its holdings in shares of California Water Service Group by 2.9% in the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 214,299 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $11,619,000 after acquiring an additional 6,081 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Verition Fund Management LLC lifted its stake in California Water Service Group by 188.1% in the third quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC now owns 13,299 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $721,000 after purchasing an additional 8,683 shares during the last quarter. 82.78% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently commented on CWT shares. Bank of America began coverage on shares of California Water Service Group in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $57.00 price target on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of California Water Service Group from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $56.00 to $52.00 in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered California Water Service Group from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Thursday, April 3rd.

California Water Service Group Stock Up 1.6 %

NYSE CWT traded up $0.76 during trading on Thursday, reaching $48.57. 573,965 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 339,595. California Water Service Group has a 12-month low of $41.64 and a 12-month high of $56.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 0.64 and a quick ratio of 0.60. The firm has a market cap of $2.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.46 and a beta of 0.56. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $46.51 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $48.09.

California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 27th. The utilities provider reported $0.33 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.38 by ($0.05). The business had revenue of $222.20 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $216.37 million. California Water Service Group had a return on equity of 13.24% and a net margin of 19.56%. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.52 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that California Water Service Group will post 3.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

California Water Service Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 21st. Investors of record on Monday, February 10th were given a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 10th. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.47%. This is an increase from California Water Service Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. California Water Service Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.70%.

About California Water Service Group

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.