California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT) Receives $53.25 Consensus Target Price from Brokerages

Shares of California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT - Get Free Report) have been given a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" by the four research firms that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation and three have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year target price among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $53.25.

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on CWT. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of California Water Service Group from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $56.00 to $52.00 in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. StockNews.com upgraded California Water Service Group from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Bank of America began coverage on 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.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Michael B. Luu sold 985 shares of California Water Service Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.50, for a total transaction of $50,727.50. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 20,354 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,048,231. The trade was a 4.62 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.73% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of California Water Service Group

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. FMR LLC raised its position in California Water Service Group by 70.5% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 63,625 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $3,450,000 after buying an additional 26,299 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its position in shares of California Water Service Group by 55.7% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 161,661 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $8,765,000 after purchasing an additional 57,811 shares in the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC grew its position in California Water Service Group by 297.1% in the 3rd quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 22,676 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,229,000 after purchasing an additional 16,966 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in California Water Service Group by 1.8% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,337,966 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $72,559,000 after buying an additional 24,275 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Entropy Technologies LP bought a new position in shares of California Water Service Group during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $588,000. 82.78% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

California Water Service Group Trading Up 1.1 %

Shares of CWT stock traded up $0.48 on Thursday, reaching $45.07. The company had a trading volume of 102,527 shares, compared to its average volume of 340,577. California Water Service Group has a 12 month low of $41.64 and a 12 month high of $56.25. The company has a current ratio of 0.64, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64. The stock has a market cap of $2.68 billion, a PE ratio of 13.01, a PEG ratio of 0.44 and a beta of 0.52. The company has a 50-day moving average of $46.50 and a 200-day moving average of $50.74.

California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The utilities provider reported $1.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.05 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $299.60 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $289.55 million. California Water Service Group had a net margin of 19.56% and a return on equity of 13.24%. The firm's revenue was up 17.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.60 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that California Water Service Group will post 3.15 earnings per share for the current year.

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.