California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT) Price Target Increased to $55.00 by Analysts at Robert W. Baird

California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT) had its target price boosted by Robert W. Baird from $52.00 to $55.00 in a report issued on Friday morning, Benzinga reports. They currently have an outperform rating on the utilities provider’s stock.

Several other analysts also recently weighed in on CWT. StockNews.com raised shares of California Water Service Group to a sell rating in a research note on Saturday, March 9th. UBS Group raised shares of California Water Service Group from a sell rating to a neutral rating and set a $49.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. Finally, TheStreet downgraded shares of California Water Service Group from a b- rating to a c+ rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 14th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, California Water Service Group currently has an average rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $54.25.

California Water Service Group Stock Down 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE:CWT opened at $47.93 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a current ratio of 0.56. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.76 billion, a PE ratio of 19.17 and a beta of 0.49. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $46.11 and a 200 day moving average of $48.31. California Water Service Group has a 52-week low of $43.50 and a 52-week high of $58.30.

California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The utilities provider reported $1.21 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.21 by $1.00. The business had revenue of $270.75 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $183.85 million. California Water Service Group had a net margin of 15.42% and a return on equity of 10.09%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 106.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted ($0.40) earnings per share. As a group, research analysts anticipate that California Water Service Group will post 2.25 EPS for the current fiscal year.

California Water Service Group Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 17th. Investors of record on Monday, May 6th will be given a dividend of $0.28 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 3rd. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.34%. California Water Service Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 44.80%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On California Water Service Group

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Global Retirement Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of California Water Service Group by 47.3% during the first quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 2,910 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $135,000 after buying an additional 935 shares during the last quarter. Canvas Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of California Water Service Group by 87.6% during the first quarter. Canvas Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 14,558 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $643,000 after buying an additional 6,797 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in California Water Service Group by 4.2% in the first quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 83,373 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $3,875,000 after acquiring an additional 3,387 shares during the period. PFG Investments LLC lifted its holdings in California Water Service Group by 15.9% in the first quarter. PFG Investments LLC now owns 7,514 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $349,000 after acquiring an additional 1,033 shares during the period. Finally, Raymond James & Associates lifted its holdings in California Water Service Group by 38.1% in the first quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 248,859 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $11,567,000 after acquiring an additional 68,686 shares during the period. 82.78% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.