California Water Service Group (CWT) vs Middlesex Water Company (MSEX)

California Water Service Group and Middlesex Water Company are both Utilities Regulated Water companies. California Water Service Group is the larger, with a market value of $2.9B against $1.0B — 2.8× the size. California Water Service Group trades at the lower P/E: 20.8× against 21.1×. California Water Service Group grew revenue faster over the last twelve months: 6.43% against 5.26%. Middlesex Water Company has the higher net margin (23.2% vs 12.6%) and the higher return on invested capital (4.08% vs 3.41%). Both pay a dividend; California Water Service Group yields more (2.81% vs 2.64%). Across the 22 metrics below, Middlesex Water Company leads on 12 and California Water Service Group on 10.

Valuation

Metric CWT MSEX Utilities Regulated Water median
P/E 20.79 21.08 20.81
P/S 2.65 4.95 4.51
P/B 1.55 1.96 1.96
Price to free cash flow n/m n/m —
EV/EBITDA 13.32 15.40 14.30
EV/Sales 4.16 6.90 6.15
Earnings yield 4.81% 4.74% 4.80%
Free cash flow yield (8.42%) (3.97%) (4.40%)

Profitability

Metric CWT MSEX Utilities Regulated Water median
Gross margin 68.05% 100.00% 71.91%
Operating margin 17.57% 29.22% 29.22%
Net margin 12.63% 23.22% 20.19%
Free cash flow margin (22.36%) (19.67%) (19.49%)
Return on equity 7.68% 9.78% 9.00%
Return on assets 2.35% 3.50% 3.21%
Return on invested capital 3.41% 4.08% 4.08%

Growth

Metric CWT MSEX Utilities Regulated Water median
Revenue growth (TTM) 6.43% 5.26% 6.92%
EPS growth (last fiscal year) (33.85%) (4.45%) 1.38%
Revenue growth, 5-year CAGR 4.72% 6.58% 7.24%
Net income growth, 5-year CAGR 5.77% 2.22% 9.40%

Health

Metric CWT MSEX Utilities Regulated Water median
Debt to equity 0.93 0.77 0.93
Current ratio 0.70 0.50 1.01
Net debt to EBITDA 4.75 4.42 4.42

Dividend

Metric CWT MSEX Utilities Regulated Water median
Dividend yield 2.81% 2.64% 2.81%
Payout ratio 0.59 0.56 0.57

Size

Metric CWT MSEX Utilities Regulated Water median
Market cap 2.85b 1.02b 1.02b

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