Gas & Water Utilities Industry Report
Market Cap: $479.7B
Stocks: 40
Median P/E: 17.4x
Median ROIC: 5.8%
Data sourced from SEC EDGAR filings. Report refreshed weekly.
Part of the Utilities sector.
Performance Dashboard
| Period | Sector (MCW) | Sector (Median) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 Day | -0.4% | -0.8% |
| 1 Week | +0.6% | +0.5% |
| 1 Month | — | — |
| 3 Months | — | — |
| 6 Months | — | — |
| YTD | +0.2% | -1.0% |
| 1 Year | +5.7% | +7.5% |
| 3 Years | +55.5% | +16.3% |
| 5 Years | +120.0% | +17.6% |
Today's Breadth: 10 advancing · 29 declining · 1 flat
Valuation Summary
| Metric | Median | P25 | P75 | vs 5Y Avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| P/E | 17.4x | 9.8x | 21.8x | -26% |
| P/B | 1.9x | 1.4x | 3.1x | -18% |
| P/S | 2.5x | 1.0x | 3.9x | — |
| P/FCF | 15.9x | 10.9x | 27.7x | — |
| EV/EBITDA | 12.6x | 10.1x | 15.4x | — |
| EV/EBIT | 19.8x | 16.3x | 24.0x | — |
Earnings Yield
5.2%
FCF Yield
2.2%
Below Fair Value
50% of stocks
Profitability Profile
Margins
| Metric | Median | 5Y Avg | P25 | P75 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gross Margin | 51.9% | 44.5% | 33.8% | 58.8% |
| Operating Margin | 22.2% | — | 17.4% | 32.0% |
| Net Margin | 13.9% | 11.9% | 9.4% | 22.3% |
| FCF Margin | 4.6% | — | -14.6% | 19.2% |
Returns on Capital
| Metric | Median | 5Y Avg | P25 | P75 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ROE | 8.5% | — | 3.3% | 11.9% |
| ROA | 3.1% | — | 1.1% | 5.0% |
| ROIC | 5.8% | 5.4% | 4.9% | 7.8% |
Growth Metrics
| Metric | 1Y | 3Y CAGR | 5Y CAGR |
|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | +6.7% | +7.1% | +9.5% |
| EPS | +6.3% | +6.1% | +7.9% |
| Free Cash Flow | +11.3% | +11.0% | +16.1% |
All values represent sector median growth rates.
Balance Sheet Health
Debt / Equity
1.1x
Net Debt / EBITDA
3.7x
Interest Coverage
2.8x
Current Ratio
0.8x
Altman Z-Score
Safe (>3): 8 (20%)
Gray (1.8–3): 11 (28%)
Distress (<1.8): 21 (53%)
Piotroski F-Score
Strong (7–9): 6 (15%)
Moderate (4–6): 26 (65%)
Weak (0–3): 8 (20%)
Top Companies
| Symbol | #▲ | Mkt Cap | P/E | EV/EBITDA | ROIC | Net Mgn | Rev Gr. | Div Yld | YTD | Qual. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| WM | 1 | $93.4B | 33.0x | 15.7x | 10.3% | 10.7% | +14.2% | 1.5% | -1.1% | 2/9 |
| RSG | 2 | $66.7B | 31.1x | 15.4x | 10.7% | 12.9% | +3.5% | 1.1% | -0.5% | 4/9 |
| LNG | 3 | $57.8B | 7.8x | 6.0x | 28.5% | 26.7% | +27.2% | 1.1% | +5.8% | 7/9 |
| OKE | 4 | $53.4B | 13.3x | 10.7x | 8.6% | 10.1% | +55.0% | 5.7% | +1.9% | 4/9 |
| WCN | 5 | $41.7B | 42.6x | 19.9x | 7.9% | 11.4% | +6.1% | 0.7% | -1.3% | 3/9 |
| ATO | 6 | $30.2B | 22.3x | 15.4x | 6.1% | 25.5% | +12.9% | 2.1% | +0.1% | 3/9 |
| CQP | 7 | $30.1B | 8.5x | 9.1x | 25.4% | 27.8% | +23.6% | — | -1.1% | 5/9 |
| AWK | 8 | $26.2B | 22.8x | 14.8x | 5.8% | 21.6% | +9.7% | 2.5% | -0.0% | 3/9 |
| WTRG | 9 | $11.1B | 17.4x | 14.0x | 6.4% | 24.9% | +18.6% | 3.5% | -2.0% | 5/9 |
| NFG | 10 | $8.3B | 16.3x | 8.8x | 15.0% | 22.8% | +17.1% | 2.3% | -3.0% | 7/9 |
| SWX | 11 | $6.6B | 13.2x | 10.1x | 5.0% | 22.7% | -62.0% | 3.1% | -0.7% | 4/9 |
| NJR | 12 | $5.6B | 14.2x | 12.0x | 6.9% | 24.8% | +9.9% | 3.9% | -1.5% | 3/9 |
| CWST | 13 | $5.6B | 842.8x | 20.4x | 1.7% | 0.4% | +17.9% | — | -2.5% | 1/9 |
| SR | 14 | $5.4B | 18.2x | 12.0x | 5.2% | 10.4% | -4.5% | 3.9% | -1.0% | 2/9 |
| OGS | 15 | $5.3B | 17.6x | 10.3x | 5.8% | 10.9% | +16.5% | 3.5% | -0.7% | 2/9 |
| BIPC | 16 | $5.1B | — | — | 144.4% | 19.1% | +0.1% | — | -8.6% | 3/9 |
| EE | 17 | $3.9B | 21.8x | 8.1x | 13.2% | 3.2% | +44.3% | 0.3% | +1.8% | 4/9 |
| CPK | 18 | $3.0B | 21.1x | 13.2x | 6.1% | 15.1% | +18.1% | 2.1% | -2.5% | 2/9 |
| CTRI | 19 | $3.0B | 103.8x | 11.9x | 6.8% | 0.8% | +13.1% | — | +4.7% | 1/9 |
| AWR | 20 | $2.9B | 21.5x | 14.2x | 9.3% | 19.8% | +10.5% | 2.7% | -3.7% | 5/9 |
Industry Composition
| Industry | Stocks | Market Cap | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Refuse Systems | 7 | $207.4B | 43.2% | |
| Natural Gas Distribution | 12 | $149.1B | 31.1% | |
| Natural Gas Transmisison & Distribution | 7 | $73.4B | 15.3% | |
| Water Supply | 14 | $49.7B | 10.4% |
Quality Distribution
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9
Quality Score (0-9)
High Quality (7+)
5%
Median Piotroski F
5/9
Profitable Years
9 of 10
Dividends & Shareholder Returns
Paying Dividends
63%
Median Div Yield
2.7%
Median Buyback Yield
0.1%
Shareholder Yield
2.5%
Payout Ratio
55.7%
Div Growth (3Y)
7.4%
Div Growth (5Y)
5.8%
Strengths & Weaknesses
Strengths
- +[Cash Flow]Robust cash generation improvement with a median 5-year FCF CAGR of 16.1%, supporting capital returns and reinvestment capacity.
- +[Profitability]High pricing power with a median gross margin of 51.9%, reflecting differentiated products or strong brand moats.
- +[Valuation]Attractive valuations: current median P/E of 17.4x is 25.8% below the 5-year average, presenting potential value opportunity.
Weaknesses
- −[Breadth]Narrow weakness: only 25.0% of stocks advanced today, suggesting widespread selling pressure.
- −[Financial Health]52.5% of companies fall in the Altman Z-Score distress zone (<1.8), indicating elevated bankruptcy risk within the sector.
- −[Leverage]Tight interest coverage at 2.8x, leaving limited cushion for debt servicing if earnings decline.
- −[Profitability]Below-average capital returns with a median ROIC of 5.8%, suggesting limited pricing power or capital-intensive operations.