California Water Service Group Prices $125 Million of Senior Unsecured Notes and California Water Service Company Prices $150 Million of First Mortgage Bonds

Group and its utility subsidiary plan to use the financing proceeds to refinance existing indebtedness and for general corporate purposes.

Rhea-AI Summary

California Water Service Group (CWT) priced $125 million of senior unsecured notes in a private placement to raise debt financing.

Wholly owned subsidiary California Water Service Company also priced $150 million of first mortgage bonds. The transactions are expected to close on or before December 31, 2026. Group's notes comprise $75 million at 6.08%, due December 15, 2031, and $50 million at 6.41%, due December 15, 2036. The subsidiary's bonds comprise $50 million at 6.49%, maturing December 15, 2046, and $100 million at 6.54%, maturing December 15, 2056. The bonds will be secured by liens on the subsidiary's properties, subject to certain exceptions and permitted liens.

2 points · 0 major

MixediHow this balance works

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0 major · 5 points

Hollow bars mark forward-looking points. How the balance works

Positive

• Moderate point. Forward-looking: it has not happened yet and may not happen.Group priced $125 million of notes, with proceeds planned partly to refinance existing indebtedness. 4.4% of market cap
• Moderate point. Forward-looking: it has not happened yet and may not happen.Cal Water priced $150 million of bonds, with proceeds planned partly to refinance existing indebtedness. 5.3% of market cap

Negative

• Minor pointGroup's $75 million Series C notes carry 6.08% interest and mature December 15, 2031.
• Minor pointGroup's $50 million Series D notes carry 6.41% interest and mature December 15, 2036.
• Minor pointCal Water's $50 million Series 4 bonds carry 6.49% interest and mature December 15, 2046.
• Minor pointCal Water's $100 million Series 5 bonds carry 6.54% interest and mature December 15, 2056.
• Minor point. Forward-looking: it has not happened yet and may not happen.Cal Water's bonds will be secured by property liens, subject to certain exceptions and permitted liens.

News Explained

Group’s notes rank equally with its credit-agreement debt; Cal Water’s secured bonds rank equally with its other first mortgage bonds.

The announced pricings remain subject to closing conditions; Group and Cal Water intend to use the net proceeds to refinance existing indebtedness and for general corporate purposes.

A private placement is a sale of securities to selected investors outside a public offering; the release says the securities are unregistered and may be offered or sold in the United States only if registered or exempt.

Key Figures

Senior notes principal: $125,000,000 First mortgage bonds principal: $150,000,000 Series C notes: $75,000,000 at 6.08% +3 more

Senior notes principal

$125,000,000

Aggregate principal amount priced by Group

First mortgage bonds principal

$150,000,000

Aggregate principal amount priced by Cal Water

Series C notes

$75,000,000 at 6.08%

Senior unsecured notes; due December 15, 2031

Series D notes

$50,000,000 at 6.41%

Senior unsecured notes; due December 15, 2036

Series 4 bonds

$50,000,000 at 6.49%

First Mortgage Bonds; maturing December 15, 2046

Series 5 bonds

$100,000,000 at 6.54%

First Mortgage Bonds; maturing December 15, 2056

Key Terms

senior unsecured notes, first mortgage bonds, private placement

3 terms

senior unsecured notes financial

"$125,000,000 in aggregate principal amount of Senior Unsecured Notes"

Senior unsecured notes are a type of loan a company borrows from investors, promising to pay back with interest. They are called "unsecured" because they aren’t backed by specific assets like buildings or equipment, but "senior" because they are paid back before other debts if the company gets into trouble. Investors see them as a relatively safer way for companies to raise money.

first mortgage bonds financial

"$150,000,000 in aggregate principal amount of First Mortgage Bonds"

First mortgage bonds are debt securities backed by a company’s property, granting bondholders the primary legal claim to that real estate if the issuer cannot pay. Think of them as being first in line for repayment, like a homeowner’s mortgage lender who gets paid before other creditors. For investors, this priority and the tangible collateral typically make these bonds less risky than unsecured debt, which can mean lower yields but greater protection in bankruptcy.

private placement financial

"in private placement transactions"

A private placement is a sale of securities directly to a selected group of investors, typically institutions or accredited investors, instead of through a public offering. It lets a company raise money faster and with fewer regulatory steps; for existing shareholders it matters because the newly issued shares, often sold at a discount, increase the share count and can dilute their ownership.

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SAN JOSE, Calif., Oct. 15, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- California Water Service Group (Group, NYSE: CWT) today announced the pricing of $125,000,000 in aggregate principal amount of Senior Unsecured Notes (the Notes) by Group and $150,000,000 in aggregate principal amount of First Mortgage Bonds (the Bonds) by California Water Service Company (Cal Water), a wholly owned subsidiary of Group, in private placement transactions. The transactions are expected to close on or before December 31, 2026, subject to the satisfaction of customary closing conditions.

The Notes consist of $75,000,000 of 6.08% senior unsecured notes, Series C, due December 15, 2031, and $50,000,000 of 6.41% senior unsecured notes, Series D, due December 15, 2036. The Bonds consist of $50,000,000 of 6.49% bonds, Series 4, maturing December 15, 2046, and $100,000,000 of 6.54% bonds, Series 5, maturing December 15, 2056.

Interest on the Notes will accrue semi-annually and be payable in arrears. The Notes will rank equally with Group’s indebtedness under its Credit Agreement, dated as of March 31, 2023, with Bank of America, N.A. and the other parties thereto. Interest on the Bonds will accrue semi-annually and be payable in arrears. The Bonds will rank equally with all of Cal Water’s other First Mortgage Bonds and will be secured by liens on its properties, subject to certain exceptions and permitted liens.

Group plans to use the net proceeds from the sale of the Notes to refinance existing indebtedness and for general corporate purposes. Cal Water plans to use the net proceeds from the sale of the Bonds to refinance existing indebtedness and for general corporate purposes, as set forth in California Public Utilities Code Section 817.

Neither the Notes nor the Bonds have been registered under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and neither may be offered or sold in the United States absent registration or an applicable exemption from registration requirements. This announcement is neither an offer to sell nor a solicitation of an offer to buy any of the Notes or the Bonds. The matters discussed in this release include forward-looking statements. These statements are based on current expectations or beliefs and are subject to factors and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those described in the forward-looking statements. Group is providing this information as of the date of this news release and assumes no obligation to update any forward-looking statement to reflect events or circumstances occurring after the date of this news release.

About California Water Service Group

California Water Service Group is the parent company of regulated utilities California Water Service Company, Hawaii Water Service Company, Inc., New Mexico Water Service Company, Washington Water Service Company, and TWSC, Inc., a utility holding company. Together, these companies provide regulated and non-regulated water and wastewater service to more than 2.2 million people in California, Hawaii, New Mexico, Texas, and Washington. California Water Service Group’s common stock trades on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol “CWT.” Additional information is available online at www.calwatergroup.com.

This news release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning established by the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 (PSLRA) regarding the consummation of the transactions, the satisfaction of customary closing conditions with respect to the transactions and the use of proceeds from the transactions. The forward-looking statements are intended to qualify under provisions of the federal securities laws for “safe harbor” treatment established by the PSLRA. Forward-looking statements in this news release are based on currently available information, expectations, estimates, assumptions and projections, and our management’s beliefs, assumptions, judgments and expectations about us, the water utility industry and general economic conditions. These statements are not statements of historical fact. When used in our documents, statements that are not historical in nature, including words like will, would, expects, intends, plans, believes, may, could, estimates, assumes, anticipates, projects, progress, predicts, hopes, targets, forecasts, should, seeks or variations of these words or similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance. They are based on numerous assumptions that we believe are reasonable, but they are open to a wide range of uncertainties and business risks. Consequently, actual results or outcomes may vary materially from what is contained in a forward-looking statement. Factors that may cause actual results or outcomes to be different than those expected or anticipated include, but are not limited to: the outcome and timeliness of regulatory commissions' actions concerning rate relief and other matters, including with respect to general rate cases and other regulatory proceedings; the impact of opposition to rate increases; our ability to recover costs; federal governmental and state regulatory commissions' decisions, including decisions on proper disposition of property; changes in state regulatory commissions' policies and procedures; changes in California State Water Resources Control Board water quality standards; changes in environmental compliance and water quality requirements, such as the United States Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) finalization of a National Primary Drinking Water Regulation (NPDWR) establishing legally enforceable maximum contaminant levels (MCL) for PFAS in drinking water in 2024 as well as legal challenges to such MCLs; EPA's proposed new PFAS rulemaking, including impacts to the current PFAS NPDWR; the impact of weather, climate change, natural disasters, including wildfires and landslides and actual or threatened public health emergencies, including disease outbreaks, on our operations, water quality, water availability, water sales and operating results and the adequacy of our emergency preparedness; electric power interruptions, especially as a result of public safety power shutoff programs; availability of water supplies; our ability to invest or apply the proceeds from the issuance of common stock in an accretive manner; consequences of eminent domain actions relating to our water systems; increased risk of inverse condemnation losses as a result of the impact of weather, climate change and natural disasters, including wildfires and landslides; shifts in population, including housing and customer growth; issues with the implementation, maintenance or security of our information technology and operational technology systems; physical and cyber security risks and threats and the adequacy of our efforts to mitigate such risks and threats; the ability of our enterprise risk management processes to identify or address risks adequately; labor relations matters as we negotiate with the unions; changes in customer water use patterns and the effects of conservation, including as a result of drought conditions; our ability to complete, in a timely manner or at all, successfully integrate and achieve anticipated benefits from announced acquisitions, including the Oregon, Nevada and BVRT acquisitions; restrictive covenants in or changes to the credit ratings on our current or future debt that could increase our financing costs or affect our ability to borrow, make payments on debt or pay dividends; risks associated with expanding our business and operations, including into other geographic areas; the impact of stagnating or worsening business and economic conditions, including inflationary pressures, general economic slowdown or a recession, changes in tariff policy, the interest rate environment, changes in monetary policy, adverse capital markets activity or macroeconomic conditions as a result of geopolitical conflicts, including ongoing conflicts in the Middle East, and the prospect of shutdowns of the U.S. federal government; the impact of market conditions and volatility on unrealized gains or losses on our non-qualified benefit plan investments and our operating results; the impact of weather and timing of meter reads on our accrued and unbilled revenue; the impact of evolving legal and regulatory requirements, including sustainability requirements; the impact of the evolving U.S. political environment and changes effected, proposed, or threatened by the U.S. federal government that has led to, in some cases, legal challenges and uncertainty around the funding, functioning and policy priorities of U.S. federal regulatory agencies and the status of current and future regulations; and other risks and unforeseen events described in our Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filings. In light of these risks, uncertainties and assumptions, investors are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this news release. When considering forward-looking statements, you should keep in mind the cautionary statements included in this paragraph, as well as the Annual Report on Form 10-K, Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q and other reports filed from time-to-time with the SEC. We are not under any obligation and we expressly disclaim any obligation to update or alter any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. A credit rating is not a recommendation to buy, sell or hold any securities, may be changed at any time by the applicable ratings agency and should be evaluated independently of any other information.

CONTACT:	Jim Lynch, jlynch@calwater.com, (408) 367-8200 (analysts)
	Shannon Dean, sdean@calwater.com, (408) 367-8243 (media)

FAQ

AI-generated questions and answers. How Rhea-AI works. Not financial advice.

How much debt did California Water Service Group and Cal Water price?

California Water Service Group priced $125 million of senior unsecured notes, and its wholly owned subsidiary Cal Water priced $150 million of first mortgage bonds. The private placement transactions are expected to close on or before December 31, 2026, subject to customary closing conditions.

How will interest be paid on CWT's new notes and Cal Water's bonds?

Interest on both the notes and bonds will accrue semi-annually and be payable in arrears, meaning payment follows the period in which interest accrues.

How will CWT's new notes and Cal Water's bonds rank against existing debt?

The notes will rank equally with Group's indebtedness under its March 31, 2023 Credit Agreement with Bank of America and the other parties. The bonds will rank equally with all of Cal Water's other first mortgage bonds.