What is Zacks Research’s Estimate for CWT FY2024 Earnings?

California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT) – Stock analysts at Zacks Research decreased their FY2024 earnings per share estimates for California Water Service Group in a note issued to investors on Thursday, November 14th. Zacks Research analyst J. Saha now expects that the utilities provider will earn $3.31 per share for the year, down from their previous estimate of $3.36. The consensus estimate for California Water Service Group’s current full-year earnings is $3.29 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for California Water Service Group’s Q3 2025 earnings at $1.13 EPS, Q4 2025 earnings at $0.63 EPS, FY2025 earnings at $2.36 EPS, Q1 2026 earnings at $0.18 EPS, Q2 2026 earnings at $0.40 EPS, Q3 2026 earnings at $1.15 EPS and FY2026 earnings at $2.48 EPS.

California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The utilities provider reported $1.03 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.05 by ($0.02). California Water Service Group had a return on equity of 13.24% and a net margin of 19.56%. The business had revenue of $299.60 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $289.55 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.60 earnings per share. California Water Service Group’s quarterly revenue was up 17.5% on a year-over-year basis.

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 stock from $50.00 to $57.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $53.67.

California Water Service Group Stock Up 1.6 %

Shares of NYSE CWT opened at $50.97 on Monday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $52.72 and its two-hundred day moving average is $51.86. The company has a market capitalization of $3.03 billion, a PE ratio of 14.73 and a beta of 0.49. California Water Service Group has a 12-month low of $43.50 and a 12-month high of $56.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 0.64 and a quick ratio of 0.60.

California Water Service Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 22nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 12th will be issued a $0.28 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 12th. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.20%. California Water Service Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 32.37%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Thomas M. Krummel sold 555 shares of California Water Service Group stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.09, for a total value of $30,574.95. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 21,951 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,209,280.59. The trade was a 2.47 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.73% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of California Water Service Group

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CWT. Sei Investments Co. boosted its holdings in shares of California Water Service Group by 38.7% in the 1st quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 16,520 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $768,000 after purchasing an additional 4,613 shares during the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. grew its position in California Water Service Group by 19.4% during the first quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 194,093 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $9,021,000 after acquiring an additional 31,522 shares during the period. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System increased its stake in California Water Service Group by 18.1% during the first quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System now owns 19,503 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $906,000 after acquiring an additional 2,994 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings 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 during the period. Finally, UniSuper Management Pty Ltd acquired a new position in shares of California Water Service Group in the 1st quarter valued at about $670,000. 82.78% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

California Water Service Group Company Profile

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.