American Water Works' Pending Merger Could Address Concerns Around Water Bill Affordability, BofA Says

MT Newswires Live01-13

American Water Works' (AWK) pending merger with Essential Utilities (WTRG) could help address concerns around water bill affordability and the sustainability of earnings-per-share growth guidance, BofA said in a Monday note.

BofA said that American Water Works' 50-100-year infrastructure replacement cycle warrants a valuation premium compared to electric peers, who are more depend upon rapid infrastructure build-outs to serve their datacenter customers.

Noting its concerns on the company, BofA said that electric and gas utility EPS growth has caught up to American Water Works, eroding the historical 20-40% premium that was previously supported by 200-300 basis points higher growth.

Additionally, BofA said that the company relies on frequent rate increases across multiple jurisdictions to achieve its 7% to 9% EPS growth guidance and that policymakers have raised affordability concerns.

The firm raised its rating on American Water Works to neutral from underperform and its price target to $139 from $117.

Price: 131.56, Change: +3.58, Percent Change: +2.80

Disclaimer: Investing carries risk. This is not financial advice. The above content should not be regarded as an offer, recommendation, or solicitation on acquiring or disposing of any financial products, any associated discussions, comments, or posts by author or other users should not be considered as such either. It is solely for general information purpose only, which does not consider your own investment objectives, financial situations or needs. TTM assumes no responsibility or warranty for the accuracy and completeness of the information, investors should do their own research and may seek professional advice before investing.

Comments

We need your insight to fill this gap

Leave a comment

{"i18n":{"language":"en_US"},"isChannel":false,"data":{"share":"https://ttm.financial/m/news/2603554542?lang=en_US&edition=fundamental","thumbnail":"","is_english":true,"pubTime":"2026-01-13 00:29","share_image_url":"https://static.laohu8.com/e9f99090a1c2ed51c021029395664489","id":"2603554542","market":"fut","top_or_hot":-1,"title":"American Water Works' Pending Merger Could Address Concerns Around Water Bill Affordability, BofA Says","media":"MT Newswires Live","content":"<html><body><p> American Water Works' (AWK) pending merger with <a href=\"https://laohu8.com/S/WTRG\">Essential Utilities</a> (WTRG) could help address concerns around water bill affordability and the sustainability of earnings-per-share growth guidance, BofA said in a Monday note.</p><p>BofA said that American Water Works' 50-100-year infrastructure replacement cycle warrants a valuation premium compared to electric peers, who are more depend upon rapid infrastructure build-outs to serve their datacenter customers.</p><p>Noting its concerns on the company, BofA said that electric and gas utility EPS growth has caught up to American Water Works, eroding the historical 20-40% premium that was previously supported by 200-300 basis points higher growth.</p><p>Additionally, BofA said that the company relies on frequent rate increases across multiple jurisdictions to achieve its 7% to 9% EPS growth guidance and that policymakers have raised affordability concerns.</p><p>The firm raised its rating on American Water Works to neutral from underperform and its price target to $139 from $117.</p><p>Price: 131.56, Change: +3.58, Percent Change: +2.80</p></body></html>","source":"mtnewswires_news","html":"<!DOCTYPE html>\n<html>\n<head>\n<meta http-equiv=\"Content-Type\" content=\"text/html; charset=utf-8\" />\n<meta name=\"viewport\" content=\"width=device-width,initial-scale=1.0,minimum-scale=1.0,maximum-scale=1.0,user-scalable=no\"/>\n<meta name=\"format-detection\" content=\"telephone=no,email=no,address=no\" />\n<title>American Water Works' Pending Merger Could Address Concerns Around Water Bill Affordability, BofA Says</title>\n<style type=\"text/css\">\na,abbr,acronym,address,applet,article,aside,audio,b,big,blockquote,body,canvas,caption,center,cite,code,dd,del,details,dfn,div,dl,dt,\nem,embed,fieldset,figcaption,figure,footer,form,h1,h2,h3,h4,h5,h6,header,hgroup,html,i,iframe,img,ins,kbd,label,legend,li,mark,menu,nav,\nobject,ol,output,p,pre,q,ruby,s,samp,section,small,span,strike,strong,sub,summary,sup,table,tbody,td,tfoot,th,thead,time,tr,tt,u,ul,var,video{ font:inherit;margin:0;padding:0;vertical-align:baseline;border:0 }\nbody{ font-size:16px; line-height:1.5; color:#999; background:transparent; }\n.wrapper{ overflow:hidden;word-break:break-all;padding:10px; }\nh1,h2{ font-weight:normal; line-height:1.35; margin-bottom:.6em; }\nh3,h4,h5,h6{ line-height:1.35; margin-bottom:1em; }\nh1{ font-size:24px; }\nh2{ font-size:20px; }\nh3{ font-size:18px; }\nh4{ font-size:16px; }\nh5{ font-size:14px; }\nh6{ font-size:12px; }\np,ul,ol,blockquote,dl,table{ margin:1.2em 0; }\nul,ol{ margin-left:2em; }\nul{ list-style:disc; }\nol{ list-style:decimal; }\nli,li p{ margin:10px 0;}\nimg{ max-width:100%;display:block;margin:0 auto 1em; }\nblockquote{ color:#B5B2B1; border-left:3px solid #aaa; padding:1em; }\nstrong,b{font-weight:bold;}\nem,i{font-style:italic;}\ntable{ width:100%;border-collapse:collapse;border-spacing:1px;margin:1em 0;font-size:.9em; }\nth,td{ padding:5px;text-align:left;border:1px solid #aaa; }\nth{ font-weight:bold;background:#5d5d5d; }\n.symbol-link{font-weight:bold;}\n/* header{ border-bottom:1px solid #494756; } */\n.title{ margin:0 0 8px;line-height:1.3;color:#ddd; }\n.meta {color:#5e5c6d;font-size:13px;margin:0 0 .5em; }\na{text-decoration:none; color:#2a4b87;}\n.meta .head { display: inline-block; overflow: hidden}\n.head .h-thumb { width: 30px; height: 30px; margin: 0; padding: 0; border-radius: 50%; float: left;}\n.head .h-content { margin: 0; padding: 0 0 0 9px; float: left;}\n.head .h-name {font-size: 13px; color: #eee; margin: 0;}\n.head .h-time {font-size: 11px; color: #7E829C; margin: 0;line-height: 11px;}\n.small {font-size: 12.5px; display: inline-block; transform: scale(0.9); -webkit-transform: scale(0.9); transform-origin: left; -webkit-transform-origin: left;}\n.smaller {font-size: 12.5px; display: inline-block; transform: scale(0.8); -webkit-transform: scale(0.8); transform-origin: left; -webkit-transform-origin: left;}\n.bt-text {font-size: 12px;margin: 1.5em 0 0 0}\n.bt-text p {margin: 0}\n</style>\n</head>\n<body>\n<div class=\"wrapper\">\n<header>\n<h2 class=\"title\">\nAmerican Water Works' Pending Merger Could Address Concerns Around Water Bill Affordability, BofA Says\n</h2>\n\n<h4 class=\"meta\">\n\n\n<a class=\"head\" href=\"https://laohu8.com/wemedia/1092851196\">\n\n\n<div class=\"h-thumb\" style=\"background-image:url(https://community-static.tradeup.com/news/3002d84abbd5ace3c99397c7f95b8d4e);background-size:cover;\"></div>\n\n<div class=\"h-content\">\n<p class=\"h-name\">MT Newswires Live </p>\n<p class=\"h-time\">2026-01-13 00:29</p>\n</div>\n\n</a>\n\n\n</h4>\n\n</header>\n<article>\n<html><body><p> American Water Works' (AWK) pending merger with <a href=\"https://laohu8.com/S/WTRG\">Essential Utilities</a> (WTRG) could help address concerns around water bill affordability and the sustainability of earnings-per-share growth guidance, BofA said in a Monday note.</p><p>BofA said that American Water Works' 50-100-year infrastructure replacement cycle warrants a valuation premium compared to electric peers, who are more depend upon rapid infrastructure build-outs to serve their datacenter customers.</p><p>Noting its concerns on the company, BofA said that electric and gas utility EPS growth has caught up to American Water Works, eroding the historical 20-40% premium that was previously supported by 200-300 basis points higher growth.</p><p>Additionally, BofA said that the company relies on frequent rate increases across multiple jurisdictions to achieve its 7% to 9% EPS growth guidance and that policymakers have raised affordability concerns.</p><p>The firm raised its rating on American Water Works to neutral from underperform and its price target to $139 from $117.</p><p>Price: 131.56, Change: +3.58, Percent Change: +2.80</p></body></html>\n\n</article>\n</div>\n</body>\n</html>\n","isBrief":false,"type":0,"news_type":1,"symbol":"AWK","symbol_name":"美国水务","start_time":0,"source_url":"https://www.mtnewswires.com/","article_id":"2603554542","we_media_id":"1092851196","thumbnails":[],"rights":null,"url":"https://stock-news.laohu8.com/highlight/detail?id=2603554542","pubTimestamp":1768235340,"columns":[],"sourceInfo":{"source_id":"mtnewswires_news","name":"MT Newswires"},"weMediaInfo":{"media_name":"MT Newswires Live","introduction":"The most recognized names in North America, Europe and Asia rely on MT Newswires to power their applications. Better news, better service, better price.","home_visible":1,"id":"1092851196","head_image":"https://community-static.tradeup.com/news/3002d84abbd5ace3c99397c7f95b8d4e"},"summary":"American Water Works' (AWK) pending merger with Essential Utilities (WTRG) could help address concerns around water bill affordability and the sustainability of earnings-per-share growth guidance, Bof","collect":0,"end_time":0,"defaultTopTitle":"","property":[],"viewcount":null,"language":"en","relate_stocks":{"AWK":"美国水务","LU1721428347.USD":"BNP PARIBAS CLIMATE IMPACT \"C\" (USD) ACC","LU1620156130.USD":"BNP PARIBAS AQUA \"C\" (USD) ACC","IE00BD4GTV84.USD":"LEGG MASON CLEARBRIDGEINFRASTRUCTURE VALUE \"A\" (USDHDG) ACC","LU2023250504.SGD":"Allianz Thematica Cl AMg DIS H2-SGD","LU2477742899.HKD":"BNP PARIBAS CLIMATE IMPACT \"C\" (HKD) ACC","LU2506952410.USD":"BNP PARIBAS CLIMATE IMPACT \"CRH\" (USDHDG) ACC A","LU1917777945.USD":"安联专题基金Cl AT Acc","LU2125909247.SGD":"Natixis Thematics Meta H-R/A SGD","LU2229751404.USD":"ALLIANZ GLOBAL WATER \"AT3\" (USD) ACC","LU1923622614.USD":"Natixis Thematics Meta R/A USD","LU2413665964.HKD":"BNP PARIBAS AQUA \"C\" (HKD) ACC","LU2543165471.USD":"E FUND (HK) GLOBAL QUALITY GROWTH \"A\" (USD) ACC","LU0347712357.USD":"BNP PARIBAS GLOBAL ENVIRONMENT \"C\" (USD) ACC","LU2240825500.USD":"AZ EQUITY - WATER & RENEWABLE RESOURCES \"A-AZ\" (USD) ACC","IE00BD4GTW91.USD":"LEGG MASON CLEARBRIDGEINFRASTRUCTURE VALUE \"A\" (USDHDG) INC","LU1721428933.USD":"法巴全球经典环境基金RH MD Dis","LU1620156213.USD":"BNP PARIBAS AQUA \"C\" (USD) INC","LU2413666426.HKD":"BNP PARIBAS GLOBAL ENVIRONMENT \"C\" (HKD) ACC","LU2106854487.HKD":"ALLIANZ THEMATICA \"AMG\" (HKD) INC","LU2125909593.SGD":"Natixis Thematics Meta R/A SGD","BK4588":"碎股","LU1165135440.EUR":"BNP Paribas Aqua Classic Cap EUR","LU2211815571.USD":"ALLIANZ POSITIVE CHANGE \"AT\" (USD) ACC","LU2413666004.HKD":"BNP PARIBAS AQUA \"CRH\" (HKDHDG) INC","LU1721427968.SGD":"BNP PARIBAS AQUA \"CRH\" (SGDHDG) INC","IE00BD4GTT62.SGD":"Legg Mason ClearBridge Infrastructure Value A SGD-H (mdis) plus","LU1596574779.USD":"BNP PARIBAS AQUA \"C\" (USDHDG) ACC","LU2413666699.HKD":"BNP PARIBAS GLOBAL ENVIRONMENT \"CRH\" (HKDHDG) INC","LU2346227817.USD":"BGF SUSTAINABLE GLOBAL INFRASTRUCTURE \"A2\" (USD) ACC","LU1974910355.USD":"Allianz Thematica Cl AMg DIS USD","BK4172":"水公用事业","LU2125910179.SGD":"Natixis Thematics Water H-R/A SGD","LU1543694498.USD":"法巴水资源基金RH MD Dis","LU2089279066.USD":"ALLIANZ GLOBAL WATER \"AT\" (USD) ACC","BK4585":"ETF&股票定投概念","LU2125910336.SGD":"Natixis Thematics Water R/A SGD","WTRG":"Essential Utilities, Inc.","LU2506952337.HKD":"BNP PARIBAS CLIMATE IMPACT \"CRH\" (HKDHDG) ACC","LU1923621640.USD":"Natixis Thematics Water R/A USD"},"translate_title":"美国银行表示，美国水务公司即将进行的合并可以解决人们对水费负担能力的担忧","themeId":null,"isJumpTheme":false,"ttsUrl":null,"symbols_score_info":{"WTRG":1,"AWK":1.5},"content_text":"American Water Works' (AWK) pending merger with Essential Utilities (WTRG) could help address concerns around water bill affordability and the sustainability of earnings-per-share growth guidance, BofA said in a Monday note.BofA said that American Water Works' 50-100-year infrastructure replacement cycle warrants a valuation premium compared to electric peers, who are more depend upon rapid infrastructure build-outs to serve their datacenter customers.Noting its concerns on the company, BofA said that electric and gas utility EPS growth has caught up to American Water Works, eroding the historical 20-40% premium that was previously supported by 200-300 basis points higher growth.Additionally, BofA said that the company relies on frequent rate increases across multiple jurisdictions to achieve its 7% to 9% EPS growth guidance and that policymakers have raised affordability concerns.The firm raised its rating on American Water Works to neutral from underperform and its price target to $139 from $117.Price: 131.56, Change: +3.58, Percent Change: +2.80","kind":"highlight","is_publish_news":true,"is_publish_highlight":false,"is_publish_live":false,"is_publish_wemedia":null,"editions":null,"column":"","sentiment":"1","news_tag":"corporation","news_rank":0,"symbols":[],"gpt_button":0,"need_auth":false,"code":"91000000","status":"200"},"commentList":[],"isCommentEnd":true,"newsSizeData":{"likeSize":0,"commentSize":0,"repostSize":0,"favoriteSize":0,"likeStatus":false,"favoriteStatus":false},"APP":{"userAgent":"Mozilla/5.0 AppleWebKit/537.36 (KHTML, like Gecko; compatible; ClaudeBot/1.0; +claudebot@anthropic.com)","isDev":false,"isTTM":true,"tenantId":"TBGLOBAL","deviceId":"web-server-community-laohu8-v3","version":"4.36.0","shortVersion":"4.36.0","platform":"web","vendor":"web","appName":"ttm","isIOS":false,"isAndroid":false,"isTiger":false,"isTHS":false,"isWeiXin":false,"isWeiXinMini":false,"isWeiBo":false,"isQQ":false,"isBaiduSwan":false,"isBaiduBox":false,"isDingTalk":false,"isToutiao":false,"isOnePlus":false,"isHuaWei":false,"isXiaomi":false,"isXiaomiWebView":false,"isOppo":false,"isVivo":false,"isSamsung":false,"isMobile":false},"href":"/m/news/2603554542","isCrawlerRequest":true}