Seaport Res Ptn Issues Pessimistic Estimate for CWT Earnings

California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT) – Research analysts at Seaport Res Ptn dropped their FY2028 earnings per share estimates for shares of California Water Service Group in a research report issued on Monday, November 3rd. Seaport Res Ptn analyst A. Storozynski now anticipates that the utilities provider will post earnings per share of $2.69 for the year, down from their prior estimate of $3.05. The consensus estimate for California Water Service Group’s current full-year earnings is $3.15 per share.

California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The utilities provider reported $1.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.20 by ($0.17). The business had revenue of $311.24 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $321.35 million. California Water Service Group had a return on equity of 8.28% and a net margin of 13.71%.California Water Service Group’s quarterly revenue was up 3.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.03 EPS.

A number of other research firms have also weighed in on CWT. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of California Water Service Group from $59.00 to $55.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Robert W. Baird set a $55.00 price objective on California Water Service Group in a research report on Friday, October 31st. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of California Water Service Group in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised California Water Service Group from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 2nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $55.67.

California Water Service Group Stock Performance

CWT opened at $46.37 on Wednesday. California Water Service Group has a twelve month low of $41.64 and a twelve month high of $52.61. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.76 billion, a PE ratio of 20.25, a PEG ratio of 2.25 and a beta of 0.69. The company has a current ratio of 0.53, a quick ratio of 0.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $46.63 and its 200 day moving average price is $46.77.

Institutional Trading of California Water Service Group

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of CWT. Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its position in California Water Service Group by 3,318.8% in the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 547 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 531 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of California Water Service Group by 109.9% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 697 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 365 shares during the period. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise acquired a new position in shares of California Water Service Group in the 1st quarter worth approximately $34,000. Whittier Trust Co. acquired a new position in shares of California Water Service Group in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $36,000. Finally, Hantz Financial Services Inc. boosted its position in shares of California Water Service Group by 291.1% during the 3rd quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 880 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 655 shares during the period. 82.78% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

California Water Service Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 21st. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 10th will be given a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 10th. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.6%. California Water Service Group’s payout ratio is currently 52.40%.

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.