Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co. Cuts Stock Position in California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT)

Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co. cut its position in shares of California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT - Free Report) by 42.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 36,335 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 27,219 shares during the quarter. Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co. owned about 0.06% of California Water Service Group worth $1,647,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Natixis Advisors LLC lifted its stake in California Water Service Group by 6.5% in the third quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 11,109 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $602,000 after buying an additional 682 shares during the period. Intech Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of California Water Service Group in the 3rd quarter valued at $585,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of California Water Service Group by 7.2% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 710,958 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $38,548,000 after acquiring an additional 48,055 shares during the period. Citigroup Inc. boosted its stake in California Water Service Group by 78.8% during the third quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 72,207 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $3,915,000 after acquiring an additional 31,831 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cerity Partners LLC grew its holdings in California Water Service Group by 38.1% in the third quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 11,270 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $611,000 after purchasing an additional 3,107 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.78% of the company's stock.

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California Water Service Group Stock Down 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE:CWT traded down $0.11 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $48.61. 75,255 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 368,771. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 0.64 and a quick ratio of 0.60. California Water Service Group has a 12 month low of $41.64 and a 12 month high of $56.25. The company has a market cap of $2.89 billion, a PE ratio of 14.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.46 and a beta of 0.49. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $45.86 and a 200-day moving average price of $48.40.

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). California Water Service Group had a return on equity of 13.24% and a net margin of 19.56%. The company had revenue of $222.20 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $216.37 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.52 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate 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. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 10th were paid a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 10th. This is a boost from California Water Service Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.47%. California Water Service Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.70%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on CWT. Bank of America began coverage on shares of California Water Service Group in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. They set a "buy" rating and a $57.00 price objective on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company raised California Water Service Group from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $56.00 to $52.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, StockNews.com raised California Water Service Group from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, February 8th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $53.25.

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.