Seaport Res Ptn Has Bullish Estimate for CWT FY2024 Earnings

California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT - Free Report) - Investment analysts at Seaport Res Ptn raised their FY2024 EPS estimates for California Water Service Group in a report released on Monday, January 6th. Seaport Res Ptn analyst A. Storozynski now expects that the utilities provider will earn $3.36 per share for the year, up from their prior estimate of $3.26. The consensus estimate for California Water Service Group's current full-year earnings is $3.29 per share. Seaport Res Ptn also issued estimates for California Water Service Group's FY2025 earnings at $2.31 EPS and FY2027 earnings at $2.83 EPS.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently issued reports on CWT. StockNews.com downgraded shares of California Water Service Group from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of California Water Service Group from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and lowered their price target for the company from $56.00 to $52.00 in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Bank of America started coverage on California Water Service Group in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. They set a "buy" rating and a $57.00 price objective on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $53.25.

California Water Service Group Price Performance

NYSE:CWT traded up $0.40 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $44.35. The stock had a trading volume of 414,377 shares, compared to its average volume of 295,419. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.64 billion, a PE ratio of 12.82 and a beta of 0.52. California Water Service Group has a 52 week low of $43.50 and a 52 week high of $56.25. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $49.00 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $51.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a current ratio of 0.64.

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 for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.05 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $299.60 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $289.55 million. California Water Service Group had a net margin of 19.56% and a return on equity of 13.24%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 17.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.60 EPS.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On California Water Service Group

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Arizona State Retirement System lifted its stake in California Water Service Group by 1.8% in the second quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 16,147 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $783,000 after acquiring an additional 287 shares during the period. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV raised its holdings in shares of California Water Service Group by 2.7% in the 3rd quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV now owns 12,041 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $653,000 after purchasing an additional 316 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its position in shares of California Water Service Group by 255.6% in 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. Glenmede Trust Co. NA boosted its stake in shares of California Water Service Group by 8.4% during the third quarter. Glenmede Trust Co. NA now owns 5,026 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $273,000 after purchasing an additional 390 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank increased its holdings in California Water Service Group by 0.6% during the third quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 64,767 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $3,512,000 after buying an additional 407 shares during the period. 82.78% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, VP Michael B. Luu sold 985 shares of the business's stock in a transaction 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 completion of 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 ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 0.73% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

California Water Service Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 22nd. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 12th were issued a dividend of $0.28 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, November 12th. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.53%. California Water Service Group's payout ratio is 32.37%.

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.