Ethic Inc. Acquires 18,659 Shares of California Water Service Group $CWT

Ethic Inc. increased its holdings in shares of California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT) by 146.4% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 31,408 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 18,659 shares during the quarter. Ethic Inc.’s holdings in California Water Service Group were worth $1,453,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its position in California Water Service Group by 228.2% during the second quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 676 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 470 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in California Water Service Group in the second quarter valued at $33,000. Bessemer Group Inc. boosted its holdings in California Water Service Group by 67.9% in the first quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 744 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 301 shares during the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC grew its position in California Water Service Group by 74.7% during the 3rd quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 765 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 327 shares during the period. Finally, Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. acquired a new stake in California Water Service Group during the 2nd quarter worth about $36,000. 82.78% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of California Water Service Group in a research note on Monday, November 2nd. Seaport Research Partners restated a “buy” rating and issued a $53.00 target price on shares of California Water Service Group in a research note on Wednesday, August 12th. Freedom Broker raised California Water Service Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $49.00 to $53.00 in a report on Thursday, October 29th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised California Water Service Group from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, July 18th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $53.50.

California Water Service Group Stock Down 0.5%

CWT stock opened at $49.42 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $3.11 billion, a PE ratio of 22.06, a P/E/G ratio of 1.79 and a beta of 0.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 0.68 and a current ratio of 0.71. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $47.55 and its 200 day moving average is $46.88. California Water Service Group has a one year low of $41.29 and a one year high of $53.82.

California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 29th. The utilities provider reported $1.05 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.16 by ($0.11). The firm had revenue of $332.17 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $332.17 million. California Water Service Group had a net margin of 12.78% and a return on equity of 7.75%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.03 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that California Water Service Group will post 2.53 EPS for the current year.

California Water Service Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 9th will be given a dividend of $0.3350 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 9th. This represents a $1.34 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.7%. California Water Service Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 59.82%.

Insider Activity at California Water Service Group

In other news, Director Lester Snow sold 500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.21, for a total transaction of $25,105.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 17,817 shares in the company, valued at $894,591.57. This trade represents a 2.73% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.78% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

California Water Service Group Company Profile

California Water Service Group is a holding company that provides water and wastewater services through regulated utility subsidiaries. Its operations serve residential, commercial, industrial and public-sector customers, with services that include water delivery, wastewater collection and treatment, and related utility operations. The company serves communities in California, Hawaii, New Mexico and Washington. Its subsidiaries include California Water Service, Hawaii Water Service, New Mexico Water Service and Washington Water Service.