California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT) to Issue $0.28 Quarterly Dividend

California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT) announced a quarterly dividend on Wednesday, April 24th, Zacks reports. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 6th will be paid a dividend of 0.28 per share by the utilities provider on Friday, May 17th. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.25%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 3rd.

California Water Service Group has raised its dividend by an average of 7.0% per year over the last three years and has raised its dividend every year for the last 58 years. California Water Service Group has a dividend payout ratio of 47.3% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities research analysts expect California Water Service Group to earn $2.38 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.12 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 47.1%.

California Water Service Group Stock Up 1.4 %

Shares of California Water Service Group stock opened at $49.83 on Thursday. California Water Service Group has a 12-month low of $43.50 and a 12-month high of $58.30. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.88 billion, a PE ratio of 19.93 and a beta of 0.47. The company has a quick ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 0.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $46.16 and its 200-day moving average is $48.32.

California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The utilities provider reported $1.21 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.21 by $1.00. California Water Service Group had a return on equity of 10.09% and a net margin of 15.42%. The firm had revenue of $270.75 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $183.85 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted ($0.40) EPS. California Water Service Group’s revenue was up 106.5% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that California Water Service Group will post 2.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Thomas M. Krummel sold 2,220 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.00, for a total transaction of $111,000.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 23,873 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,193,650. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.88% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CWT has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. UBS Group upgraded shares of California Water Service Group from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $49.00 price target on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 4th. TheStreet downgraded shares of California Water Service Group from a “b-” rating to a “c+” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 14th. StockNews.com raised California Water Service Group from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, April 26th. Finally, Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on California Water Service Group from $52.00 to $55.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, April 26th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, California Water Service Group presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $54.25.

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.