SJW Group (NYSE:SJW) Trading Up 3% Following Analyst Upgrade

SJW Group (NYSE:SJW - Get Free Report) shot up 3% during trading on Monday after StockNews.com upgraded the stock from a sell rating to a hold rating. The stock traded as high as $54.26 and last traded at $54.27. 172,844 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 40% from the average session volume of 286,646 shares. The stock had previously closed at $52.67.

Other analysts also recently issued research reports about the stock. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of SJW Group from $53.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Bank of America upgraded shares of SJW Group from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $59.00 to $55.00 in a research report on Monday, February 3rd.

Institutional Trading of SJW Group

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of SJW. Quarry LP boosted its stake in SJW Group by 123.4% during the 4th quarter. Quarry LP now owns 668 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 369 shares during the period. Point72 DIFC Ltd boosted its stake in SJW Group by 81.4% during the 3rd quarter. Point72 DIFC Ltd now owns 704 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 316 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd. boosted its stake in SJW Group by 64.4% during the 4th quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 766 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares during the period. Sterling Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in SJW Group by 842.0% during the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 1,055 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $52,000 after purchasing an additional 943 shares during the period. Finally, US Bancorp DE boosted its stake in SJW Group by 53.8% during the 3rd quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 1,255 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $73,000 after purchasing an additional 439 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.29% of the company's stock.

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SJW Group Stock Performance

The stock has a market cap of $1.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.72, a PEG ratio of 3.94 and a beta of 0.65. The stock's 50 day moving average is $50.11 and its two-hundred day moving average is $54.27. The company has a current ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25.

SJW Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 3rd. Investors of record on Monday, February 10th were paid a dividend of $0.42 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 10th. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.09%. This is a boost from SJW Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. SJW Group's dividend payout ratio is currently 58.95%.

About SJW Group

SJW Group, through its subsidiaries, provides water utility and other related services in the United States. It operates in Water Utility Services and Real Estate Services segments. The company engages in the production, purchase, storage, purification, distribution, wholesale, and retail sale of water and wastewater services; and supplies groundwater from wells, surface water from watershed run-off and diversion, reclaimed water, and imported water purchased from the Santa Clara Valley Water District.