28,000 California Water Service Group $CWT Shares Sold by Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS

Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS lowered its holdings in California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT) by 50.9% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 27,000 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 28,000 shares during the quarter. Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS’s holdings in California Water Service Group were worth $1,249,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in CWT. Parallel Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in California Water Service Group by 74.7% during the third quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 765 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 327 shares in the last quarter. Abacus Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in California Water Service Group in the third quarter valued at about $209,000. CenterBook Partners LP increased its holdings in California Water Service Group by 62.1% in the third quarter. CenterBook Partners LP now owns 12,935 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $599,000 after buying an additional 4,957 shares in the last quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund increased its holdings in California Water Service Group by 2.2% in the third quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 13,914 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $644,000 after buying an additional 300 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bridge City Capital LLC lifted its position in shares of California Water Service Group by 21.3% during the 3rd quarter. Bridge City Capital LLC now owns 45,534 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,107,000 after acquiring an additional 7,981 shares during the period. 82.78% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CWT has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of California Water Service Group in a research note on Monday, November 2nd. Freedom Broker raised California Water Service Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $49.00 to $53.00 in a report on Thursday, October 29th. Seaport Research Partners reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $53.00 target price on shares of California Water Service Group in a research report on Wednesday, August 12th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded California Water Service Group from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, July 18th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, California Water Service Group presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $53.50.

Insider Activity at California Water Service Group

In related news, Director Lester Snow sold 500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.21, for a total value of $25,105.00. Following the sale, the director owned 17,817 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $894,591.57. This represents a 2.73% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Thomas Krummel sold 3,700 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.37, for a total value of $186,369.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 20,104 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,012,638.48. The trade was a 15.54% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders own 0.78% of the company’s stock.

California Water Service Group Stock Performance

NYSE:CWT opened at $50.15 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 0.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $47.55 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $46.80. California Water Service Group has a twelve month low of $41.29 and a twelve month high of $53.82. The company has a market capitalization of $3.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.80 and a beta of 0.47.

California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 29th. The utilities provider reported $1.05 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.16 by ($0.11). California Water Service Group had a net margin of 12.78% and a return on equity of 7.75%. The business had revenue of $332.17 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $332.17 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.03 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that California Water Service Group will post 2.53 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

California Water Service Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 20th. Investors of record on Monday, November 9th will be given a dividend of $0.3350 per share. This represents a $1.34 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 9th. California Water Service Group’s payout ratio is currently 59.82%.

California Water Service Group Company Profile

California Water Service Group is a holding company that provides water and wastewater services through regulated utility subsidiaries. Its operations serve residential, commercial, industrial and public-sector customers, with services that include water delivery, wastewater collection and treatment, and related utility operations.

The company serves communities in California, Hawaii, New Mexico and Washington. Its subsidiaries include California Water Service, Hawaii Water Service, New Mexico Water Service and Washington Water Service.

The group traces its history to 1926 and is headquartered in San Jose, California.