It's Showtime for California Water Service Group

Seth Jayson, The Motley Fool
Updated

California Water Service Group (NYS: CWT) is expected to report Q1 earnings on May 1. Here's what Wall Street wants to see:

The 10-second takeaway
 Comparing the upcoming quarter to the prior-year quarter, average analyst estimates predict California Water Service Group's revenues will wither -0.5% and EPS will come to zero.

The average estimate for revenue is $116.2 million. On the bottom line, the average EPS estimate is $0.00.


Revenue details
 Last quarter, California Water Service Group logged revenue of $121.5 million. GAAP reported sales were 18% higher than the prior-year quarter's $103.0 million.

Source: S&P Capital IQ. Quarterly periods. Dollar amounts in millions. Non-GAAP figures may vary to maintain comparability with estimates.

EPS details
 Last quarter, EPS came in at $0.12. GAAP EPS of $0.12 for Q4 were 200% higher than the prior-year quarter's $0.04 per share.

Source: S&P Capital IQ. Quarterly periods. Non-GAAP figures may vary to maintain comparability with estimates.

Recent performance
 For the preceding quarter, gross margin was 46.6%, 130 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Operating margin was 9.2%, 210 basis points better than the prior-year quarter. Net margin was 4.1%, 230 basis points better than the prior-year quarter.

Looking ahead

The full year's average estimate for revenue is $574.5 million. The average EPS estimate is $0.87.

Investor sentiment
 The stock has a four-star rating (out of five) at Motley Fool CAPS, with 224 members out of 235 rating the stock outperform, and 11 members rating it underperform. Among 87 CAPS All-Star picks (recommendations by the highest-ranked CAPS members), 86 give California Water Service Group a green thumbs-up, and one give it a red thumbs-down.

Of Wall Street recommendations tracked by S&P Capital IQ, the average opinion on California Water Service Group is hold, with an average price target of $20.40.

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The article It's Showtime for California Water Service Group originally appeared on Fool.com.

Seth Jayson had no position in any company mentioned here at the time of publication. You can view his stock holdings here. He is co-advisor ofMotley Fool Hidden Gems, which provides new small-cap ideas every month, backed by a real-money portfolio. The Motley Fool recommends California Water Service Group. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

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