PNC Financial Services Group Inc. Sells 231 Shares of California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT)

PNC Financial Services Group Inc. trimmed its holdings in shares of California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT) by 3.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 6,498 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 231 shares during the quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc.’s holdings in California Water Service Group were worth $295,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in California Water Service Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $4,704,000. Arizona State Retirement System grew its position in California Water Service Group by 2.6% during the fourth quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 17,068 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $774,000 after buying an additional 438 shares during the period. Aigen Investment Management LP grew its position in California Water Service Group by 18.1% during the fourth quarter. Aigen Investment Management LP now owns 4,954 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $225,000 after buying an additional 760 shares during the period. Cbre Investment Management Listed Real Assets LLC grew its position in California Water Service Group by 5.9% during the fourth quarter. Cbre Investment Management Listed Real Assets LLC now owns 648,406 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $29,392,000 after buying an additional 36,142 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in California Water Service Group by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 722,163 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $32,736,000 after buying an additional 11,205 shares during the period. 82.78% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

California Water Service Group Price Performance

CWT stock opened at $46.01 on Friday. California Water Service Group has a one year low of $41.64 and a one year high of $56.25. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $45.40 and its 200-day moving average price is $48.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a current ratio of 0.64. The company has a market capitalization of $2.74 billion, a PE ratio of 13.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.46 and a beta of 0.49.

California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 27th. The utilities provider reported $0.33 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.38 by ($0.05). California Water Service Group had a return on equity of 13.24% and a net margin of 19.56%. The company had revenue of $222.20 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $216.37 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.52 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that California Water Service Group will post 3.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

California Water Service Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 21st. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 10th were issued a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.61%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 10th. This is an increase from California Water Service Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. California Water Service Group’s payout ratio is 36.70%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CWT has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. StockNews.com upgraded shares of California Water Service Group from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 8th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of California Water Service Group from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $56.00 to $52.00 in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Bank of America initiated coverage on shares of California Water Service Group in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $57.00 price target for the company. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $53.25.

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.