Maple Capital Management Inc. Takes Position in California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT)

Maple Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 6,667 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $302,000.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Blue Trust Inc. increased its holdings in shares of California Water Service Group by 255.6% during the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 505 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 363 shares during the period. Boston Family Office LLC acquired a new stake in California Water Service Group during the third quarter worth about $210,000. CIBC Asset Management Inc bought a new position in California Water Service Group during the third quarter valued at about $219,000. Aigen Investment Management LP acquired a new position in California Water Service Group in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $227,000. Finally, Penn Mutual Asset Management bought a new stake in shares of California Water Service Group in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $239,000. 82.78% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on CWT. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded California Water Service Group from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $56.00 to $52.00 in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Bank of America started 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. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of California Water Service Group from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, February 8th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, California Water Service Group has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $53.25.

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California Water Service Group Price Performance

Shares of California Water Service Group stock traded up $0.13 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $46.70. 288,237 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 374,689. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $44.78 and a 200-day simple moving average of $49.45. 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 $2.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.50, a PEG ratio of 0.46 and a beta of 0.52. 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 - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 27th. The utilities provider reported $0.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.38 by ($0.05). California Water Service Group had a net margin of 19.56% and a return on equity of 13.24%. 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 previous year, the business posted $0.52 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that California Water Service Group will post 3.15 earnings per share for the current year.

California Water Service Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 21st. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 10th were given a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 10th. This is a positive change from California Water Service Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.57%. California Water Service Group's payout ratio is 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.