Short Interest in SJW Group (NYSE:SJW) Increases By 30.9%

SJW Group (NYSE:SJW) saw a large increase in short interest in the month of February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 450,200 shares, an increase of 30.9% from the February 13th total of 343,900 shares. Approximately 1.4% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 279,800 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 1.6 days.

SJW Group Stock Performance

SJW traded down $0.39 on Tuesday, reaching $53.51. The company had a trading volume of 125,213 shares, compared to its average volume of 200,266. The stock has a market cap of $1.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.41, a P/E/G ratio of 3.94 and a beta of 0.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a current ratio of 0.77. SJW Group has a fifty-two week low of $44.91 and a fifty-two week high of $62.18. The company’s fifty day moving average is $50.98 and its 200 day moving average is $54.00.

SJW Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 3rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 10th were given a $0.42 dividend. This is an increase from SJW Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 10th. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.14%. SJW Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 58.95%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On SJW Group

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in SJW. Quarry LP grew its holdings in SJW Group by 123.4% in the 4th quarter. Quarry LP now owns 668 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 369 shares in the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. boosted its position in shares of SJW Group by 64.4% in the fourth quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 766 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 300 shares during the period. Point72 DIFC Ltd increased its position in SJW Group by 81.4% during the third quarter. Point72 DIFC Ltd now owns 704 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $41,000 after acquiring an additional 316 shares during the period. Sterling Capital Management LLC increased its position in SJW Group by 842.0% during the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 1,055 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $52,000 after acquiring an additional 943 shares during the period. Finally, US Bancorp DE raised its stake in SJW Group by 53.8% in the 3rd quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 1,255 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $73,000 after purchasing an additional 439 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 84.29% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently commented on SJW shares. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on SJW Group from $53.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, February 28th. StockNews.com upgraded SJW Group from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Finally, Bank of America upgraded SJW Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and dropped their price target for the company from $59.00 to $55.00 in a research note on Monday, February 3rd.

SJW Group Company Profile

SJW Group, through its subsidiaries, provides water utility and other related services in the United States. It operates in Water Utility Services and Real Estate Services segments. The company engages in the production, purchase, storage, purification, distribution, wholesale, and retail sale of water and wastewater services; and supplies groundwater from wells, surface water from watershed run-off and diversion, reclaimed water, and imported water purchased from the Santa Clara Valley Water District.