Wells Fargo & Company Upgrades California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT) to “Overweight”

California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT) was upgraded by analysts at Wells Fargo & Company from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating in a report released on Tuesday, MarketBeat reports. The brokerage currently has a $52.00 price target on the utilities provider’s stock, down from their previous price target of $56.00. Wells Fargo & Company‘s price objective would suggest a potential upside of 20.20% from the stock’s previous close.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. StockNews.com downgraded shares of California Water Service Group from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Bank of America started coverage on California Water Service Group in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $57.00 target price on the stock. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, California Water Service Group has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $53.25.

California Water Service Group Trading Down 2.5 %

Shares of California Water Service Group stock opened at $43.26 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $48.70 and a 200 day moving average of $51.27. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $2.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.50 and a beta of 0.52. California Water Service Group has a fifty-two week low of $42.31 and a fifty-two week high of $56.25.

California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The utilities provider reported $1.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.05 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $299.60 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $289.55 million. California Water Service Group had a return on equity of 13.24% and a net margin of 19.56%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 17.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.60 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that California Water Service Group will post 3.29 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other California Water Service Group news, VP Michael B. Luu sold 985 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.50, for a total value of $50,727.50. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 20,354 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,048,231. This trade represents a 4.62 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.73% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of California Water Service Group

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Arizona State Retirement System grew its holdings in California Water Service Group by 1.8% during the 2nd quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 16,147 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $783,000 after acquiring an additional 287 shares in the last quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV lifted its position in shares of California Water Service Group by 2.7% during the 3rd quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV now owns 12,041 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $653,000 after purchasing an additional 316 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. grew its stake in shares of California Water Service Group by 255.6% during the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 505 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 363 shares in the last quarter. Glenmede Trust Co. NA increased its holdings in California Water Service Group by 8.4% in the third quarter. Glenmede Trust Co. NA now owns 5,026 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $273,000 after buying an additional 390 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank increased its holdings in California Water Service Group by 0.6% in the third quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 64,767 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $3,512,000 after buying an additional 407 shares during the last quarter. 82.78% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.