International Assets Investment Management LLC Purchases Shares of 14,206 California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT)

International Assets Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT - Free Report) in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 14,206 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $7,700,000.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of CWT. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of California Water Service Group during the 1st quarter worth approximately $670,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. bought a new position in shares of California Water Service Group in the 2nd quarter worth $6,823,000. Tidal Investments LLC acquired a new stake in shares of California Water Service Group during the first quarter worth $535,000. Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its holdings in California Water Service Group by 19.4% in the first quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 194,093 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $9,021,000 after purchasing an additional 31,522 shares during the last quarter. Finally, ProShare Advisors LLC lifted its stake in California Water Service Group by 11.2% in the first quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 182,576 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $8,486,000 after buying an additional 18,388 shares during the period. 82.78% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

California Water Service Group Trading Down 3.4 %

California Water Service Group stock traded down $1.76 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $50.20. 122,571 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 325,758. California Water Service Group has a fifty-two week low of $43.50 and a fifty-two week high of $56.25. The company has a quick ratio of 0.49, a current ratio of 0.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.15 and a beta of 0.49. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $53.56 and its 200-day simple moving average is $51.44.

California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The utilities provider reported $1.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 17.78% and a return on equity of 11.94%. California Water Service Group's revenue for the quarter was up 17.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.60 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate that California Water Service Group will post 3.33 earnings per share for the current year.

California Water Service Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 22nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 12th will be issued a dividend of $0.28 per share. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.23%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 12th. California Water Service Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.96%.

Insider Buying and Selling at California Water Service Group

In other news, Director Thomas M. Krummel sold 555 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.33, for a total transaction of $30,153.15. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 22,506 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,222,750.98. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders have sold 1,665 shares of company stock valued at $90,093 in the last 90 days. 0.73% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, Wells Fargo & Company raised California Water Service Group from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and upped their price target for the company from $50.00 to $57.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $53.67.

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.