California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT) Shares Sold by Prudential Financial Inc.

Prudential Financial Inc. lowered its holdings in California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT - Free Report) by 40.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 136,249 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 92,550 shares during the period. Prudential Financial Inc. owned approximately 0.23% of California Water Service Group worth $6,176,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in CWT. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of California Water Service Group by 2.2% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 7,514,709 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $340,642,000 after acquiring an additional 158,295 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in California Water Service Group by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,337,966 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $72,559,000 after purchasing an additional 24,275 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in California Water Service Group by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 722,163 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $32,736,000 after purchasing an additional 11,205 shares in the last quarter. Cbre Investment Management Listed Real Assets LLC boosted its stake in shares of California Water Service Group by 5.9% in the 4th quarter. Cbre Investment Management Listed Real Assets LLC now owns 648,406 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $29,392,000 after buying an additional 36,142 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its position in shares of California Water Service Group by 21.2% during the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 634,179 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $28,747,000 after buying an additional 110,962 shares in the last quarter. 82.78% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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California Water Service Group Stock Down 2.0 %

Shares of NYSE CWT traded down $1.01 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $48.55. The company had a trading volume of 558,180 shares, compared to its average volume of 336,784. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $46.20 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $48.36. California Water Service Group has a 52-week low of $41.64 and a 52-week 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 $2.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.03, a PEG ratio of 0.46 and a beta of 0.49.

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 the consensus estimate 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 firm had revenue of $222.20 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $216.37 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.52 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict 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 dividend of $0.30 per share. This is a positive change from California Water Service Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 10th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.47%. California Water Service Group's payout ratio is 36.70%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Bank of America initiated 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 objective on the stock. StockNews.com cut California Water Service Group from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised 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. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" 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.