Seaport Res Ptn Brokers Increase Earnings Estimates for CWT

California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT) – Equities researchers at Seaport Res Ptn raised their FY2024 EPS estimates for shares of California Water Service Group in a research note issued to investors on Monday, January 6th. Seaport Res Ptn analyst A. Storozynski now forecasts that the utilities provider will earn $3.36 per share for the year, up from their previous forecast 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.

California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The utilities provider reported $1.03 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.05 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $299.60 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $289.55 million. California Water Service Group had a return on equity of 13.24% and a net margin of 19.56%. The company’s revenue was up 17.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.60 EPS.

A number of other research firms have also recently commented on CWT. StockNews.com cut shares of California Water Service Group from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Bank of America started coverage on California Water Service Group in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $57.00 price target for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, California Water Service Group has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $54.50.

California Water Service Group Stock Performance

NYSE:CWT opened at $43.84 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $49.00 and a two-hundred day simple moving average 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 has a 52-week low of $43.50 and a 52-week high of $56.25. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.61 billion, a PE ratio of 12.67 and a beta of 0.52.

California Water Service Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 22nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 12th were issued a $0.28 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, November 12th. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.55%. California Water Service Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 32.37%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, VP Michael B. Luu sold 985 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.50, for a total transaction of $50,727.50. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 20,354 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,048,231. This represents a 4.62 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.73% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On California Water Service Group

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. FMR LLC lifted its position in California Water Service Group by 70.5% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 63,625 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $3,450,000 after buying an additional 26,299 shares during the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC grew its stake in California Water Service Group by 297.1% in the 3rd quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 22,676 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,229,000 after acquiring an additional 16,966 shares in the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of California Water Service Group during the third quarter worth approximately $585,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of California Water Service Group by 7.2% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 710,958 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $38,548,000 after acquiring an additional 48,055 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of California Water Service Group by 1.8% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,337,966 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $72,559,000 after acquiring an additional 24,275 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 82.78% of the company’s stock.

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.