Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. Sells 1,333 Shares of California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT)

Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. lowered its position in shares of California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT) by 1.6% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 80,664 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 1,333 shares during the quarter. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. owned about 0.14% of California Water Service Group worth $3,911,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Wulff Hansen & CO. lifted its position in California Water Service Group by 4,565.4% during the 2nd quarter. Wulff Hansen & CO. now owns 1,053,688 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $51,093,000 after acquiring an additional 1,031,103 shares during the period. Nuance Investments LLC increased its stake in shares of California Water Service Group by 40.8% during the first quarter. Nuance Investments LLC now owns 3,013,749 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $140,079,000 after purchasing an additional 872,865 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of California Water Service Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,614,000. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of California Water Service Group by 3.3% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 7,198,981 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $334,609,000 after purchasing an additional 232,344 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Zimmer Partners LP purchased a new stake in shares of California Water Service Group in the 1st quarter worth approximately $7,957,000. Institutional investors own 82.78% of the company’s stock.

California Water Service Group Stock Down 1.1 %

California Water Service Group stock opened at $54.44 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $3.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.78 and a beta of 0.49. The company has a current ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 0.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. California Water Service Group has a 12 month low of $43.50 and a 12 month high of $56.25. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $53.51 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $49.99.

California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The utilities provider reported $0.70 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.42 by $0.28. The company had revenue of $244.30 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $216.25 million. California Water Service Group had a return on equity of 11.94% and a net margin of 17.78%. California Water Service Group’s revenue for the quarter was up 25.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.17 EPS. Equities analysts predict that California Water Service Group will post 3.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

California Water Service Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 23rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 12th were issued a dividend of $0.28 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 12th. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.06%. California Water Service Group’s payout ratio is 44.80%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Wells Fargo & Company upgraded California Water Service Group from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $50.00 to $57.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $53.67.

Insider Activity at California Water Service Group

In other California Water Service Group news, Director Thomas M. Krummel sold 555 shares of California Water Service Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $52.99, for a total value of $29,409.45. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 23,616 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,251,411.84. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other California Water Service Group news, Director Thomas M. Krummel sold 1,654 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.07, for a total value of $82,815.78. Following the transaction, the director now owns 24,171 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,210,241.97. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Thomas M. Krummel sold 555 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $52.99, for a total value of $29,409.45. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 23,616 shares in the company, valued at $1,251,411.84. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 3,874 shares of company stock worth $202,318 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.73% of the company’s stock.

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.