California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT) Shares Acquired by Atria Wealth Solutions Inc.

Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. increased its holdings in shares of California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT) by 72.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 9,591 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,028 shares during the period. Atria Wealth Solutions Inc.’s holdings in California Water Service Group were worth $497,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Raymond James & Associates increased its position in shares of California Water Service Group by 35.7% in the third quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 175,973 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $8,325,000 after buying an additional 46,303 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in California Water Service Group by 5.1% in the 3rd quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 65,799 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $3,113,000 after acquiring an additional 3,174 shares in the last quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System raised its position in California Water Service Group by 9.1% during the third quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System now owns 62,989 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,980,000 after acquiring an additional 5,247 shares during the period. IFM Investors Pty Ltd lifted its holdings in California Water Service Group by 11.9% during the third quarter. IFM Investors Pty Ltd now owns 7,700 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $364,000 after purchasing an additional 817 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew its position in shares of California Water Service Group by 14.1% in the third quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 31,854 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,507,000 after purchasing an additional 3,929 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.78% of the company’s stock.

California Water Service Group Stock Performance

Shares of California Water Service Group stock opened at $50.57 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 0.52 and a current ratio of 0.56. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $46.37 and its 200 day moving average price is $48.35. The company has a market cap of $2.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.23 and a beta of 0.47. California Water Service Group has a one year low of $43.50 and a one year high of $58.30.

California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The utilities provider reported $1.21 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.21 by $1.00. California Water Service Group had a net margin of 15.42% and a return on equity of 10.09%. The firm had revenue of $270.75 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $183.85 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted ($0.40) EPS. The company’s revenue was up 106.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts predict that California Water Service Group will post 2.86 EPS for the current year.

California Water Service Group Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 6th will be paid a $0.28 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 3rd. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.21%. California Water Service Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 44.80%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. UBS Group raised shares of California Water Service Group from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $49.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. TheStreet lowered California Water Service Group from a “b-” rating to a “c+” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 14th. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on California Water Service Group from $52.00 to $55.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, April 26th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of California Water Service Group from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, April 26th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $54.25.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Thomas M. Krummel sold 2,220 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.00, for a total value of $111,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 23,873 shares in the company, valued at $1,193,650. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.88% of the company’s stock.

California Water Service Group 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.