SJW Group (NYSE:SJW) Trading 3% Higher After Analyst Upgrade

SJW Group (NYSE:SJW) was up 3% during trading on Monday after StockNews.com upgraded the stock from a sell rating to a hold rating. The company traded as high as $54.26 and last traded at $54.27. Approximately 172,844 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 40% from the average daily volume of 286,646 shares. The stock had previously closed at $52.67.

Other analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. Bank of America upgraded shares of SJW Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and cut their price target for the company from $59.00 to $55.00 in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of SJW Group from $53.00 to $57.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its holdings in shares of SJW Group by 6.2% during the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 134,039 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $6,597,000 after acquiring an additional 7,848 shares during the last quarter. Voloridge Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of SJW Group by 100.2% in the 4th quarter. Voloridge Investment Management LLC now owns 10,526 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $518,000 after buying an additional 5,268 shares in the last quarter. iSAM Funds UK Ltd purchased a new stake in SJW Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $209,000. Squarepoint Ops LLC purchased a new stake in shares of SJW Group in the fourth quarter valued at about $660,000. Finally, ProShare Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of SJW Group by 22.9% in the 4th quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 159,074 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $7,830,000 after purchasing an additional 29,691 shares during the last quarter. 84.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

SJW Group Trading Up 3.2 %

The company has a quick ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $49.92 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $54.31. The firm has a market cap of $1.78 billion, a PE ratio of 19.69, a P/E/G ratio of 3.94 and a beta of 0.65.

SJW Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 3rd. Investors of record on Monday, February 10th were given a $0.42 dividend. This is a positive change from SJW Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.09%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 10th. SJW Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 58.95%.

SJW Group Company Profile

SJW Group, through its subsidiaries, provides water utility and other related services in the United States. It operates in Water Utility Services and Real Estate Services segments. The company engages in the production, purchase, storage, purification, distribution, wholesale, and retail sale of water and wastewater services; and supplies groundwater from wells, surface water from watershed run-off and diversion, reclaimed water, and imported water purchased from the Santa Clara Valley Water District.