American States Water’s (AWR - Free Report) strategic investments in infrastructure upgrades will allow it to provide quality services to its expanding customer base. Given its growth opportunities, AWR makes for a solid investment option in the utility sector.
Let’s focus on the factors that make this Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) stock a strong investment option at the moment.
Growth Projections
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for AWR’s 2024 earnings per share (EPS) has moved 1.7% north to $3.01 in the past 60 days.
AWR’s long-term (three-to-five years) earnings growth rate is 6.3%.
Return on Equity
Return on equity (ROE) indicates how efficiently a company has been utilizing the funds to generate higher returns. Currently, American States Water’s ROE is 13.6%, higher than the industry’s average of 8.68%. This indicates that the company has been utilizing the funds more constructively than its peers in the utility water supply industry.
Debt Position
At the end of fourth-quarter 2023, AWR’s total debt to capital was 53.95%, better than the industry’s average of 54.61%.
The time to interest earned ratio at the end of fourth-quarter 2023 was 4.9. The ratio, being greater than one, reflects the company’s ability to meet future interest obligations without difficulties.
Dividend History
American States Water has been a steady dividend payer. It has paid dividends to shareholders every year since 1931. AWR’s objective is to hike its dividend rate and witness a CAGR of more than 7% over the long term.
The company’s current dividend yield is 2.4%, better than the Zacks S&P 500 Composite’s 1.5%.
Systematic Investments
Strategic capital investments are making AWR’s infrastructure stronger and more resilient. The company has plans to invest $611.4 million in the 2025-2027 period to further strengthen its operations.
Price Performance
In the past month, the stock fell 3.3% against the industry’s 1.1% growth. The slackness in price offers a good opportunity to add the stock at low rates.
Other Stocks to Consider
A few other top-ranked stocks from the same industry are Primo Water (PRMW - Free Report) , The York Water Company (YORW - Free Report) and Consolidated Water Co. Ltd. (CWCO - Free Report) , each holding a Zacks Rank #2 at present. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
PRMW’s long-term earnings growth rate is 12.9%. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2024 EPS has increased 17.3% in the past 60 days.
YORW’s current dividend yield is 2.36%, which is better than the Zacks S&P 500 Composite’s 1.54%. The company delivered an average earnings surprise of 8.5% in the last four quarters.
CWCO’s long-term earnings growth rate is 8%. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2024 EPS has increased 1.6% in the past 60 days.
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American States Water’s (AWR - Free Report) strategic investments in infrastructure upgrades will allow it to provide quality services to its expanding customer base. Given its growth opportunities, AWR makes for a solid investment option in the utility sector.
Let’s focus on the factors that make this Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) stock a strong investment option at the moment.
Growth Projections
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for AWR’s 2024 earnings per share (EPS) has moved 1.7% north to $3.01 in the past 60 days.
AWR’s long-term (three-to-five years) earnings growth rate is 6.3%.
Return on Equity
Return on equity (ROE) indicates how efficiently a company has been utilizing the funds to generate higher returns. Currently, American States Water’s ROE is 13.6%, higher than the industry’s average of 8.68%. This indicates that the company has been utilizing the funds more constructively than its peers in the utility water supply industry.
Debt Position
At the end of fourth-quarter 2023, AWR’s total debt to capital was 53.95%, better than the industry’s average of 54.61%.
The time to interest earned ratio at the end of fourth-quarter 2023 was 4.9. The ratio, being greater than one, reflects the company’s ability to meet future interest obligations without difficulties.
Dividend History
American States Water has been a steady dividend payer. It has paid dividends to shareholders every year since 1931. AWR’s objective is to hike its dividend rate and witness a CAGR of more than 7% over the long term.
The company’s current dividend yield is 2.4%, better than the Zacks S&P 500 Composite’s 1.5%.
Systematic Investments
Strategic capital investments are making AWR’s infrastructure stronger and more resilient. The company has plans to invest $611.4 million in the 2025-2027 period to further strengthen its operations.
Price Performance
In the past month, the stock fell 3.3% against the industry’s 1.1% growth. The slackness in price offers a good opportunity to add the stock at low rates.
Other Stocks to Consider
A few other top-ranked stocks from the same industry are Primo Water (PRMW - Free Report) , The York Water Company (YORW - Free Report) and Consolidated Water Co. Ltd. (CWCO - Free Report) , each holding a Zacks Rank #2 at present. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
PRMW’s long-term earnings growth rate is 12.9%. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2024 EPS has increased 17.3% in the past 60 days.
YORW’s current dividend yield is 2.36%, which is better than the Zacks S&P 500 Composite’s 1.54%. The company delivered an average earnings surprise of 8.5% in the last four quarters.
CWCO’s long-term earnings growth rate is 8%. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2024 EPS has increased 1.6% in the past 60 days.
Zacks Names #1 Semiconductor Stock
It's only 1/9,000th the size of NVIDIA which skyrocketed more than +800% since we recommended it. NVIDIA is still strong, but our new top chip stock has much more room to boom.
With strong earnings growth and an expanding customer base, it's positioned to feed the rampant demand for Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, and Internet of Things. Global semiconductor manufacturing is projected to explode from $452 billion in 2021 to $803 billion by 2028.
See This Stock Now for Free >>
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