KBC Group NV Boosts Stake in California Water Service Group $CWT

KBC Group NV boosted its holdings in California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT) by 29.2% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 577,247 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 130,620 shares during the quarter. KBC Group NV’s holdings in California Water Service Group were worth $26,172,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of CWT. Danske Bank A S bought a new stake in shares of California Water Service Group during the 3rd quarter valued at about $28,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in California Water Service Group by 109.9% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 697 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 365 shares in the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. raised its stake 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 in the last quarter. Advisory Services Network LLC bought a new stake in California Water Service Group during the third quarter valued at approximately $44,000. Finally, CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC lifted its position in California Water Service Group by 1,475.3% during the third quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 1,150 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $53,000 after purchasing an additional 1,077 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.78% of the company’s stock.

California Water Service Group Stock Down 1.3%

Shares of CWT opened at $50.69 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $3.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.34, a P/E/G ratio of 1.89 and a beta of 0.51. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $46.63 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $45.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a current ratio of 0.69 and a quick ratio of 0.65. California Water Service Group has a 1 year low of $41.29 and a 1 year high of $52.51.

California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The utilities provider reported $0.07 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.25 by ($0.18). The business had revenue of $214.57 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $210.27 million. California Water Service Group had a return on equity of 7.06% and a net margin of 11.77%.The company’s revenue was up 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.22 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that California Water Service Group will post 2.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

California Water Service Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 22nd. Investors of record on Monday, May 11th were given a $0.335 dividend. This represents a $1.34 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 11th. California Water Service Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 67.00%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CWT has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Robert W. Baird set a $54.00 price target on shares of California Water Service Group in a report on Friday, May 1st. Weiss Ratings raised shares of California Water Service Group from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Friday, June 12th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of California Water Service Group from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, California Water Service Group has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $54.50.

Insider Buying and Selling at California Water Service Group

In other California Water Service Group news, Director Thomas M. Krummel sold 3,700 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.30, for a total transaction of $160,210.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 23,805 shares in the company, valued at $1,030,756.50. This represents a 13.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Lester A. Snow sold 1,100 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.00, for a total value of $48,400.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 18,316 shares in the company, valued at $805,904. This trade represents a 5.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders own 0.78% of the company’s stock.

About California Water Service Group

California Water Service Group (NYSE: CWT) is a publicly traded holding company that provides regulated water utility services through its subsidiaries. The company delivers safe, reliable drinking water and wastewater management to residential, commercial, industrial and municipal customers across California, Hawaii and New Mexico. Its principal operating units include California Water Service, New Mexico Water Service and Hawaii Water Service, each responsible for end‐to‐end water supply operations—from source development and treatment to distribution and customer service.

Founded in 1926 as the California Water Service Company, the group has grown to become one of the largest investor‐owned water utilities in the United States by customer count.