What is Zacks Research’s Forecast for CWT Q1 Earnings?

California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT) – Equities researchers at Zacks Research boosted their Q1 2026 earnings estimates for shares of California Water Service Group in a note issued to investors on Friday, March 6th. Zacks Research analyst Team now expects that the utilities provider will post earnings per share of $0.26 for the quarter, up from their previous forecast of $0.23. The consensus estimate for California Water Service Group’s current full-year earnings is $3.15 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for California Water Service Group’s Q2 2026 earnings at $0.78 EPS, Q1 2027 earnings at $0.31 EPS, Q2 2027 earnings at $0.79 EPS, Q4 2027 earnings at $0.27 EPS, FY2027 earnings at $2.67 EPS and FY2028 earnings at $2.75 EPS.

Separately, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of California Water Service Group in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, California Water Service Group presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $55.00.

California Water Service Group Price Performance

Shares of CWT stock opened at $45.60 on Monday. California Water Service Group has a 12-month low of $41.29 and a 12-month high of $51.63. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.04 and a beta of 0.64. The company has a quick ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $44.92 and a 200-day moving average of $45.48.

California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 25th. The utilities provider reported $0.61 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.36 by $0.25. The firm had revenue of $265.61 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $239.10 million. California Water Service Group had a net margin of 12.82% and a return on equity of 7.67%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.33 earnings per share.

California Water Service Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 9th were issued a $0.335 dividend. This represents a $1.34 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.9%. This is a boost from California Water Service Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 9th. California Water Service Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 62.33%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On California Water Service Group

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in CWT. Farther Finance Advisors LLC boosted its stake in California Water Service Group by 3,318.8% in the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 547 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 531 shares during the period. Danske Bank A S acquired a new stake in shares of California Water Service Group in the 3rd quarter valued at about $28,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of California Water Service Group by 109.9% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 697 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 365 shares in the last quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of California Water Service Group by 291.1% in the third quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 880 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 655 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd acquired a new position in shares of California Water Service Group during the third quarter worth about $43,000. 82.78% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

California Water Service Group Company Profile

California Water Service Group (NYSE: CWT) is a publicly traded holding company that provides regulated water utility services through its subsidiaries. The company delivers safe, reliable drinking water and wastewater management to residential, commercial, industrial and municipal customers across California, Hawaii and New Mexico. Its principal operating units include California Water Service, New Mexico Water Service and Hawaii Water Service, each responsible for end?to?end water supply operations—from source development and treatment to distribution and customer service.

Founded in 1926 as the California Water Service Company, the group has grown to become one of the largest investor?owned water utilities in the United States by customer count.