Creative Planning Sells 3,091 Shares of California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT)

Creative Planning lessened its holdings in California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT) by 15.0% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 17,506 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 3,091 shares during the quarter. Creative Planning’s holdings in California Water Service Group were worth $849,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Algert Global LLC bought a new stake in California Water Service Group in the 2nd quarter valued at $282,000. Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co. bought a new stake in California Water Service Group in the 2nd quarter valued at $2,025,000. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC bought a new stake in California Water Service Group in the 2nd quarter valued at $1,996,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its holdings in California Water Service Group by 1.7% in the 2nd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 31,555 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,530,000 after buying an additional 539 shares during the period. Finally, Millennium Management LLC bought a new stake in California Water Service Group in the 2nd quarter valued at $2,761,000. Institutional investors own 82.78% of the company’s stock.

California Water Service Group Stock Up 1.9 %

CWT opened at $52.39 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $53.75 and its 200-day simple moving average is $50.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.49 and a current ratio of 0.52. California Water Service Group has a twelve month low of $43.50 and a twelve month high of $56.25. The firm has a market cap of $3.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.29 and a beta of 0.49.

California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The utilities provider reported $0.70 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.42 by $0.28. The business had revenue of $244.30 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $216.25 million. California Water Service Group had a net margin of 17.78% and a return on equity of 11.94%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 25.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.17 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that California Water Service Group will post 3.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

California Water Service Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 23rd. Investors of record on Monday, August 12th were given a dividend of $0.28 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 12th. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.14%. California Water Service Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.96%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Thomas M. Krummel sold 555 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $52.99, for a total transaction of $29,409.45. Following the transaction, the director now owns 23,616 shares in the company, valued at $1,251,411.84. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders have sold a total of 2,220 shares of company stock worth $119,503 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.73% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of California Water Service Group from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $50.00 to $57.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $53.67.

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.