California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT) Posts Earnings Results, Misses Estimates By $0.18 EPS

California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT) announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday. The utilities provider reported $0.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.25 by ($0.18), FiscalAI reports. California Water Service Group had a net margin of 12.82% and a return on equity of 7.67%. The company had revenue of $214.57 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $210.27 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.22 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year.

Here are the key takeaways from California Water Service Group’s conference call:

• The Revised Proposed Decision for the 2024 California GRC is on the commission docket and is described as constructive, providing clear revenue growth visibility of approximately $91M (2026), $43M (2027), and $49M (2028) and preserving key mechanisms (RAM and cost balancing accounts).
• Capital investment accelerated — Q1 capex rose 17.6% to $129.5M and management plans $627M for 2026, which would support a >11% compounded annual rate base growth if approved.
• Reported Q1 net income declined to $4M ( $0.07 EPS) from $13.3M ($0.22 EPS) a year ago, driven by lower consumption, higher depreciation and interest from new capital, and a higher effective tax rate that reduced EPS by about $0.32.
• M&A progress continues — change-in-control filings are filed for the Nexus Nevada/Oregon deal and the BVRT minority buyout in Texas, which would add roughly 100,000 connections outside California (≈20% of total) and expand wastewater/recycled water operations.
• PFAS efforts are advancing with ongoing treatment work and legal recoveries (~$66.5M gross, ~$50M net recovered so far covering ~20–25% of estimated PFAS costs), but additional regulatory risks (e.g., potential microplastics rules) could require further capital.

California Water Service Group Stock Up 0.1%

CWT stock traded up $0.05 on Friday, hitting $42.29. 664,066 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 456,037. The stock has a market cap of $2.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.67 and a beta of 0.61. California Water Service Group has a 12-month low of $41.29 and a 12-month high of $50.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 0.85. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $45.42 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $45.27.

California Water Service Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 22nd. Investors of record on Monday, May 11th will be paid a dividend of $0.335 per share. This represents a $1.34 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 11th. California Water Service Group’s payout ratio is 62.33%.

Trending Headlines about California Water Service Group

Here are the key news stories impacting California Water Service Group this week:

• Positive Sentiment: CPUC revised proposed decision authorizes material rate increases (~$90.5M in 2026 and additional increases in 2027–28) and new revenue-stabilization mechanisms, improving visibility into future regulated revenues. CPUC Decision
• Positive Sentiment: Agreement to acquire Nexus Water Group systems (~$218M) adds ~36,000 customer equivalents and ~$109M of rate base, expanding geographic diversification and near-term growth runway. Q1 Results & Nexus Acquisition
• Positive Sentiment: Board approved an 8% annual dividend increase and declared the quarterly payout — continuing a lengthy dividend streak that supports income-focused investors. Dividend Declaration
• Neutral Sentiment: Earnings call transcript published — useful for detailed guidance, regulatory commentary and management color on the CPUC timeline and Nexus integration. Earnings Call Transcript
• Neutral Sentiment: Third-party write-ups compare CWT to American Water Works (AWK) on valuation — useful context but not an immediate catalyst. CWT vs AWK Analysis
• Negative Sentiment: Q1 EPS missed expectations ($0.07 vs. ~$0.25 consensus); net income fell sharply year-over-year as operating costs and interest expense rose, pressuring near-term profitability. Q1 Earnings Miss
• Negative Sentiment: Higher water-production costs, increased depreciation and rising interest expense (and higher short-term borrowings) could compress margins before the CPUC rate relief is implemented and collected. Q1 Results & Cost Details

Insider Activity at California Water Service Group

In other California Water Service Group news, VP Michael S. Mares, Jr. sold 3,892 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.00, for a total transaction of $171,248.00. Following the sale, the vice president owned 8,525 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $375,100. The trade was a 31.34% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, VP Michael B. Luu sold 740 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.53, for a total transaction of $32,952.20. Following the sale, the vice president directly owned 23,655 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,053,357.15. This represents a 3.03% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.78% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of California Water Service Group

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in California Water Service Group by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,337,205 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $144,602,000 after purchasing an additional 36,296 shares during the last quarter. Amundi grew its stake in California Water Service Group by 20.3% during the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 2,738,993 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $118,634,000 after purchasing an additional 462,394 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in California Water Service Group by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,420,950 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $61,579,000 after purchasing an additional 4,613 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in California Water Service Group by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,153,931 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $50,001,000 after purchasing an additional 4,913 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. grew its stake in California Water Service Group by 6.4% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 954,234 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $41,347,000 after purchasing an additional 57,170 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.78% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of California Water Service Group from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Robert W. Baird set a $54.00 price objective on shares of California Water Service Group in a research report on Friday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $54.50.

California Water Service Group Company Profile

California Water Service Group (NYSE: CWT) is a publicly traded holding company that provides regulated water utility services through its subsidiaries. The company delivers safe, reliable drinking water and wastewater management to residential, commercial, industrial and municipal customers across California, Hawaii and New Mexico. Its principal operating units include California Water Service, New Mexico Water Service and Hawaii Water Service, each responsible for end‐to‐end water supply operations—from source development and treatment to distribution and customer service.

Founded in 1926 as the California Water Service Company, the group has grown to become one of the largest investor‐owned water utilities in the United States by customer count.