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American Water (AWK) Pennsylvania Arm to Buy Wastewater Assets
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American Water Works Company (AWK - Free Report) announced that its subsidiary, Pennsylvania American Water, has signed an agreement with the York City Sewer Authority to purchase wastewater system assets of the City of York in York County for $235 million. This acquisition is expected to close by 2021-end or the beginning of 2022, subject to necessary regulatory approvals.
Pennsylvania American Water, upon closure of the acquisition, will be serving 45,000 new customer connections. The acquisition will pave way for the necessary investments to upgrade the existing wastewater assets of the City of York.
Pennsylvania American Water has successfully closed a few large acquisitions and expanded the business in Pennsylvania. Pennsylvania American Water currently provides reliable water and wastewater services to more than 2.4 million people in its service territories.
Consolidation Essential in Water Space
Aging of assets and fragmentation are the primary concerns of the existing U.S. water and wastewater industry. Per an American Water report, more than 53,000 water systems in the United States are providing water solutions to customers at present, which creates operational challenges in meeting the requirement for replacement, and modification of the aging water and wastewater infrastructure. Per the Water and Wastewater Equipment Manufacturers Association, an estimated $750 billion investment is necessary to maintain, and expand drinking water as well as wastewater services to meet demand over the next 20 years.
American Water is quite active in acquiring small service providers. In 2020, it successfully closed 23 acquisitions via adding 37,800 customers to the customer base and expanding operations in the United States. The pending 27 acquisitions (as of Jan 31) — when completed — will add another 29,800 customers to the customer base. The company is making regular investments to upgrade the existing and acquired assets. American Water has plans to invest $10.4 billion in the 2021-2025 time period and $22-$25 billion in the next decade.
Likewise, another water utility, Essential Utilities (WTRG - Free Report) has not only expanded water and wastewater operations through acquisitions but also ventured into the natural gas distribution business through the acquisition of Peoples. The company plans to invest $3 billion through 2023 to fortify operations and efficiently serve the expanding customer base. Another water utility, Global Water Resources, Inc. (GWRS - Free Report) is also taking the inorganic route to expand operations in the United States and making investments to upgrade infrastructure.
Price Performance
Shares of American Water have outperformed the industry in the past 12 months.
California Water Service currently has a dividend yield of 1.64%, which is better than the industry average. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for its 2021 and 2022 earnings per share has moved up 3.5% and 6.8%, respectively, in the past 60 days.
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American Water (AWK) Pennsylvania Arm to Buy Wastewater Assets
American Water Works Company (AWK - Free Report) announced that its subsidiary, Pennsylvania American Water, has signed an agreement with the York City Sewer Authority to purchase wastewater system assets of the City of York in York County for $235 million. This acquisition is expected to close by 2021-end or the beginning of 2022, subject to necessary regulatory approvals.
Pennsylvania American Water, upon closure of the acquisition, will be serving 45,000 new customer connections. The acquisition will pave way for the necessary investments to upgrade the existing wastewater assets of the City of York.
Pennsylvania American Water has successfully closed a few large acquisitions and expanded the business in Pennsylvania. Pennsylvania American Water currently provides reliable water and wastewater services to more than 2.4 million people in its service territories.
Consolidation Essential in Water Space
Aging of assets and fragmentation are the primary concerns of the existing U.S. water and wastewater industry. Per an American Water report, more than 53,000 water systems in the United States are providing water solutions to customers at present, which creates operational challenges in meeting the requirement for replacement, and modification of the aging water and wastewater infrastructure. Per the Water and Wastewater Equipment Manufacturers Association, an estimated $750 billion investment is necessary to maintain, and expand drinking water as well as wastewater services to meet demand over the next 20 years.
American Water is quite active in acquiring small service providers. In 2020, it successfully closed 23 acquisitions via adding 37,800 customers to the customer base and expanding operations in the United States. The pending 27 acquisitions (as of Jan 31) — when completed — will add another 29,800 customers to the customer base. The company is making regular investments to upgrade the existing and acquired assets. American Water has plans to invest $10.4 billion in the 2021-2025 time period and $22-$25 billion in the next decade.
Likewise, another water utility, Essential Utilities (WTRG - Free Report) has not only expanded water and wastewater operations through acquisitions but also ventured into the natural gas distribution business through the acquisition of Peoples. The company plans to invest $3 billion through 2023 to fortify operations and efficiently serve the expanding customer base. Another water utility, Global Water Resources, Inc. (GWRS - Free Report) is also taking the inorganic route to expand operations in the United States and making investments to upgrade infrastructure.
Price Performance
Shares of American Water have outperformed the industry in the past 12 months.
Zacks Rank & Key Pick
The company currently has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). A better-ranked stock in the same industry is California Water Service Group (CWT - Free Report) , currently having a Zacks Rank of 2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
California Water Service currently has a dividend yield of 1.64%, which is better than the industry average. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for its 2021 and 2022 earnings per share has moved up 3.5% and 6.8%, respectively, in the past 60 days.
Time to Invest in Legal Marijuana
If you’re looking for big gains, there couldn’t be a better time to get in on a young industry primed to skyrocket from $17.7 billion back in 2019 to an expected $73.6 billion by 2027.
After a clean sweep of 6 election referendums in 5 states, pot is now legal in 36 states plus D.C. Federal legalization is expected soon and that could be a still greater bonanza for investors. Even before the latest wave of legalization, Zacks Investment Research has recommended pot stocks that have shot up as high as +285.9%
You’re invited to check out Zacks’ Marijuana Moneymakers: An Investor’s Guide. It features a timely Watch List of pot stocks and ETFs with exceptional growth potential.
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