Short Interest in California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT) Expands By 6.0%

California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest during the month of December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totalling 675,500 shares, an increase of 6.0% from the November 30th total of 637,400 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 299,400 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.3 days.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Michael B. Luu sold 985 shares of California Water Service Group stock in a transaction on Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.50, for a total value of $50,727.50. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 20,354 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,048,231. The trade was a 4.62 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Insiders own 0.73% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On California Water Service Group

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its stake in shares of California Water Service Group by 55.7% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 161,661 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $8,765,000 after acquiring an additional 57,811 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its stake in California Water Service Group by 117.0% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 58,258 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $3,100,000 after purchasing an additional 31,412 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in California Water Service Group by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,337,966 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $72,559,000 after buying an additional 24,275 shares in the last quarter. Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co. raised its position in shares of California Water Service Group by 52.2% during the third quarter. Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co. now owns 63,554 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $3,446,000 after buying an additional 21,791 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Barclays PLC lifted its holdings in shares of California Water Service Group by 135.8% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 119,645 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $6,486,000 after buying an additional 68,914 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.78% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have issued reports on CWT. Bank of America began coverage on California Water Service Group in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. They set a “buy” rating and a $57.00 price target for the company. StockNews.com cut shares of California Water Service Group from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. One investment 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, California Water Service Group currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $54.50.

California Water Service Group Stock Down 1.2 %

NYSE CWT opened at $44.77 on Friday. California Water Service Group has a 52 week low of $43.50 and a 52 week high of $56.25. The company has a quick ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64. The company has a market capitalization of $2.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.94 and a beta of 0.50. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $49.29 and its 200-day moving average price is $51.36.

California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The utilities provider reported $1.03 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.05 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $299.60 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $289.55 million. California Water Service Group had a return on equity of 13.24% and a net margin of 19.56%. California Water Service Group’s revenue was up 17.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.60 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that California Water Service Group will post 3.29 earnings per share for the current year.

California Water Service Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 22nd. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 12th were issued a $0.28 dividend. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.50%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, November 12th. California Water Service Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 32.37%.

About California Water Service Group

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.