Critical Analysis: York Water (NASDAQ:YORW) & Global Water Resources (NASDAQ:GWRS)

Global Water Resources (NASDAQ:GWRS) and York Water (NASDAQ:YORW) are both small-cap utilities companies, but which is the better stock? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, valuation, profitability, dividends, risk and earnings.

Dividends

Global Water Resources pays an annual dividend of $0.30 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.8%. York Water pays an annual dividend of $0.91 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.8%. Global Water Resources pays out 375.0% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. York Water pays out 56.5% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Global Water Resources has raised its dividend for 8 consecutive years and York Water has raised its dividend for 27 consecutive years.

Profitability

This table compares Global Water Resources and York Water’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Global Water Resources	3.98%	2.11%	0.37%
York Water	28.53%	9.38%	3.47%

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of current ratings and target prices for Global Water Resources and York Water, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Global Water Resources	0	2	0	0	2.00
York Water	0	1	0	0	2.00

Global Water Resources currently has a consensus price target of $15.00, suggesting a potential upside of 92.11%. York Water has a consensus price target of $31.00, suggesting a potential downside of 4.16%. Given Global Water Resources’ higher probable upside, research analysts plainly believe Global Water Resources is more favorable than York Water.

Risk & Volatility

Global Water Resources has a beta of 0.96, meaning that its stock price is 4% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, York Water has a beta of 0.52, meaning that its stock price is 48% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

27.9% of Global Water Resources shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 49.9% of York Water shares are owned by institutional investors. 53.7% of Global Water Resources shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 0.5% of York Water shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Global Water Resources and York Water”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Global Water Resources	$60.11 million	3.74	$2.96 million	$0.08	97.60
York Water	$77.49 million	6.77	$20.06 million	$1.61	20.09

York Water has higher revenue and earnings than Global Water Resources. York Water is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Global Water Resources, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Summary

York Water beats Global Water Resources on 10 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Global Water Resources

Global Water Resources, Inc., a water resource management company, owns, operates, and manages regulated water, wastewater, and recycled water systems primarily in metropolitan Phoenix and Tucson, Arizona. It serves approximately 82,000 people in approximately 32,000 homes. The company was founded in 2003 and is based in Phoenix, Arizona.

About York Water

The York Water Company impounds, purifies, and distributes drinking water. It owns and operates three wastewater collection systems; ten wastewater collection and treatment systems; and two reservoirs, including Lake Williams and Lake Redman, which hold approximately 2.2 billion gallons of water. The company also operates a 15-mile pipeline from the Susquehanna River to Lake Redman; and owns satellite groundwater systems in York, Adams, and Lancaster Counties, as well as two impounding dams on primary system located in York and Springfield Townships. It serves customers in the fixtures and furniture, electrical machinery, food products, paper, ordnance units, textile products, air conditioning systems, laundry detergents, barbells, and motorcycle industries in 56 municipalities within four counties in south-central Pennsylvania. The York Water Company was incorporated in 1816 and is based in York, Pennsylvania.