Q3 2024 Earnings Estimate for California Water Service Group Issued By Zacks Research (NYSE:CWT)

California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT) – Research analysts at Zacks Research raised their Q3 2024 earnings estimates for California Water Service Group in a report released on Thursday, May 9th. Zacks Research analyst J. Saha now anticipates that the utilities provider will post earnings of $1.07 per share for the quarter, up from their previous forecast of $1.04. The consensus estimate for California Water Service Group’s current full-year earnings is $2.86 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for California Water Service Group’s Q4 2024 earnings at $0.45 EPS, Q2 2025 earnings at $0.43 EPS, Q3 2025 earnings at $1.12 EPS, Q4 2025 earnings at $0.65 EPS, Q1 2026 earnings at $0.21 EPS and FY2026 earnings at $2.53 EPS.

CWT has been the subject of a number of other reports. TheStreet lowered shares of California Water Service Group from a “b-” rating to a “c+” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 14th. UBS Group upgraded 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 report on Thursday, April 4th. StockNews.com upgraded California Water Service Group from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, April 26th. Finally, Robert W. Baird upped their target price on shares of 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. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $54.25.

California Water Service Group Price Performance

CWT opened at $52.66 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $3.04 billion, a PE ratio of 21.06 and a beta of 0.47. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $46.83 and a 200-day moving average price of $48.45. California Water Service Group has a 1 year low of $43.50 and a 1 year high of $58.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 0.56 and a quick ratio of 0.52.

California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The utilities provider reported $1.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.21 by $1.00. California Water Service Group had a return on equity of 10.09% and a net margin of 15.42%. The business had revenue of $270.75 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $183.85 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned ($0.40) earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 106.5% compared to the same quarter last year.

California Water Service Group Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 6th will be issued a dividend of $0.28 per share. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.13%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 3rd. California Water Service Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 44.80%.

Insider Buying and Selling at California Water Service Group

In other California Water Service Group news, Director Thomas M. Krummel sold 2,220 shares of California Water Service Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.00, for a total transaction of $111,000.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 23,873 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,193,650. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.73% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On California Water Service Group

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Raymond James & Associates increased its holdings in California Water Service Group by 35.7% in the 3rd quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 175,973 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $8,325,000 after acquiring an additional 46,303 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of California Water Service Group by 5.1% during 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 boosted its position in shares of California Water Service Group by 9.1% during the 3rd quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System now owns 62,989 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,980,000 after acquiring an additional 5,247 shares during the last quarter. IFM Investors Pty Ltd grew its holdings in shares of California Water Service Group by 11.9% in 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 holdings 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 in the last quarter. 82.78% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.