American Water Works Co. Inc
Exchange: NYSESector: UtilitiesIndustry: Utilities - Regulated Water
American Water is the largest regulated water and wastewater utility company in the United States. With a history dating back to 1886 and celebrating 140 years in 2026, We Keep Life Flowing® by providing safe, clean, reliable and affordable drinking water and wastewater services to approximately 14 million people with regulated operations in 14 states and on 18 military installations. American Water's approximately 7,000 talented professionals leverage their significant expertise and the company's national size and scale to achieve excellent outcomes for the benefit of customers, employees, investors and other stakeholders.
Did you know?
AWK's revenue grew at a 6.1% CAGR over the last 6 years.
Current Price
$138.14
+0.99%GoodMoat Value
$105.29
23.8% overvaluedProfile
Valuation (TTM)
Market Cap$26.95B
P/E24.26
EV$41.49B
P/B2.49
Shares Out195.12M
P/Sales5.24
Revenue$5.14B
EV/EBITDA12.80
American Water Works Co. Inc (AWK) Stock Analysis
GoodMoat Analysis
American Water Works is a regulated water utility with a strong local monopoly moat, but its valuation appears unfavourable. The stock trades at a significant premium to its estimated fair value, with a negative free cash flow yield and high debt. For a value investor, it fails the valuation gate of the decision framework.
Read full analysis
American Water Works Co. Inc (AWK) is the largest publicly traded water and wastewater utility in the U.S., providing essential, regulated services to millions of customers. Its primary competitive advantage, or moat, stems from Section 1 of the framework: high regulatory barriers. As a regulated utility, it operates as a government-sanctioned local monopoly, granting it a durable, exclusive position in its service territories. This aligns with the 'Regulatory Barriers' criterion. However, its Moat Score is likely limited, as utilities typically do not exhibit many other moat characteristics like network effects or high switching costs. Applying the Decision Framework (Section 6), the business may pass the initial Moat & Quality Gate due to this regulatory protection, but the Valuation & Risk Gate presents a clear hurdle. The stock price of $134.59 is 28% above the provided GoodMoat Target of $105.29, indicating a negative margin of safety. Key financial data supports this caution: a P/E of 23.6x is high for a utility with only 5.8% revenue growth, the Free Cash Flow Yield is negative at -4.7%, and the Debt/Equity ratio of 1.47 is elevated. Given the lack of a margin of safety and these financial characteristics, the current valuation is unfavourable for a value investor seeking a price below intrinsic value. Further investigation would require a compelling reason to believe the intrinsic value is significantly higher than the target or a much lower entry price.
Market Cap$26.95B
Current Price$138.14
P/E Ratio24.26
Forward P/E—
PEG Ratio—
EPS$5.69
Book Value$55.54
P/B Ratio2.49
AWK Financial Charts
FCF vs CAPEX
FCFCAPEX
Cash vs Debt
Net Debt: 15.8B
Revenue
3.6B
FY19
3.8B
FY20
3.9B
FY21
3.8B
FY22
4.2B
FY23
4.7B
FY24
5.1B
FY25
Net Income
621M
FY19
709M
FY20
1.3B
FY21
820M
FY22
944M
FY23
1.1B
FY24
1.1B
FY25
AWK 52-Week Range
$122.14
$145.60
50-Day MA: $132.64200-Day MA: $134.64
Did you know?
AWK's revenue grew at a 6.1% CAGR over the last 6 years.
American Water Works Co. Inc (AWK) Financial Summary
American Water Works Co. Inc (AWK) is a Utilities company in the Utilities - Regulated Water industry, listed on NYSE. The stock currently trades at $138.14 with a market capitalization of $26.95B.
Key valuation metrics include a P/E ratio of 24.26, price-to-book ratio of 2.49, and EPS of $5.69. The company reports a profit margin of 21.6% and return on equity of 10.3%.
AWK Key Financial Metrics
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| Market Cap | $26.95B |
| P/E Ratio | 24.26 |
| EPS | $5.69 |
| P/B Ratio | 2.49 |
| P/S Ratio | 5.24 |
| EV/EBITDA | 12.80 |
| Dividend Yield | 2.35% |
| Profit Margin | 21.6% |
| Return on Equity | 10.3% |
| Debt/Equity | 1.47 |
AWK Revenue & Earnings History
| Year | Revenue | Net Income |
|---|---|---|
| FY19 | $3.61B | $621.00M |
| FY20 | $3.78B | $709.00M |
| FY21 | $3.93B | $1.26B |
| FY22 | $3.79B | $820.00M |
| FY23 | $4.23B | $944.00M |
| FY24 | $4.68B | $1.05B |
| FY25 | $5.14B | $1.11B |
American Water Works Co. Inc (AWK) Valuation
Based on GoodMoat's DCF model, American Water Works Co. Inc has a fair value estimate of $105.29. At the current price of $138.14, the stock appears 31.2% overvalued relative to our intrinsic value estimate.
AWK Quality Indicators
American Water Works Co. Inc maintains a profit margin of 21.6% and an operating margin of 43.3%. Return on equity stands at 10.3%. The current ratio is 0.46. Debt-to-equity ratio is 1.47.
About American Water Works Co. Inc
American Water is the largest regulated water and wastewater utility company in the United States. With a history dating back to 1886 and celebrating 140 years in 2026, We Keep Life Flowing® by providing safe, clean, reliable and affordable drinking water and wastewater services to approximately 14 million people with regulated operations in 14 states and on 18 military installations. American Water's approximately 7,000 talented professionals leverage their significant expertise and the company's national size and scale to achieve excellent outcomes for the benefit of customers, employees, investors and other stakeholders.
AWK Free Cash Flow
American Water Works Co. Inc generated $-1.24B in trailing twelve-month free cash flow, representing an FCF yield of -4.61%. This low FCF yield may reflect heavy reinvestment or growth spending.
AWK Shares Outstanding
American Water Works Co. Inc has 0.20 billion shares outstanding at a share price of $138.14, giving it a market capitalization of $26.95B.