4 Reasons to Add American States Water (AWR) to Your Portfolio
American States Water Co. AWR is a utility company providing water, wastewater and electricity services in the United States.
Let’s explore the factors that make this Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) stock a strong investment pick at the moment.
Growth Projections
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for AWR’s 2023 earnings per share (EPS) is pegged at $2.96, increasing 0.4% in the past 60 days.
The consensus estimate for current-year sales stands at $574.5 million, indicating year-over-year growth of 16.9%.
The company’s long-term (three- to five-year) earnings growth is pegged at 6.3%.
Return on Equity (ROE)
ROE indicates how efficiently a company utilizes its funds to generate higher returns. AWR’s ROE is currently pegged at 13.1%, higher than the industry’s average of 10.3%, which indicates that the company is utilizing its funds more efficiently than its peers.
Liquidity
American States Water has a current ratio of 1.20, better than the industry’s average of 0.93. This implies that the company has sufficient financial capability to pay its short-term debt obligations.
Dividend History
The company has been consistently paying dividends to its shareholders. American States Water raised its dividend in August 2023, taking the quarterly figure to 43 cents, resulting in an annual payout of $1.72 per share. This is the 349th consecutive dividend to be paid by the company to its shareholders.
AWR’s current dividend yield is 1.99%, better than the Zacks S&P 500 Composite’s 1.67%.
Price Performance
In the past year, shares of AWR have gained 3.3% against the industry’s 3.2% decline.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
Other Stocks to Consider
A few other top-ranked stocks in the same industry are American Water Works Co. Inc. AWK, The York Water Co. YORW and SJW Group SJW, each carrying a Zacks Rank #2 at present. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 (Strong Buy) Rank stocks here.
AWK’s long-term earnings growth rate is 8.2%. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2023 EPS is pegged at $4.79, implying a year-over-year improvement of 6.2%.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for YORW’s 2023 EPS is pegged at $1.53, implying a year-over-year improvement of 9.3%. The stock boasts an average earnings surprise of 4.23%.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for SJW’s 2023 EPS is pegged at $2.47, implying a year-over-year improvement of 2.1%. The stock boasts an average earnings surprise of 20.97%.
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The York Water Company (YORW) : Free Stock Analysis Report
American Water Works Company, Inc. (AWK) : Free Stock Analysis Report
American States Water Company (AWR) : Free Stock Analysis Report
SJW Group (SJW) : Free Stock Analysis Report
