Essential Utilities Inc (WTRG) is slightly overvalued and York Water Co (YORW) is overvalued.
Both trade above our estimate of their intrinsic value. WTRG is the closer of the two: -12%, against -53% for YORW.
Values as of the 22 Sept 2026 close.
Discounting its cash flows at 7.2% (average of 3 methods) values the shares at $36.18; the price of $40.38 is 12% above that value, and 83% of that value comes from beyond year five.
Leak Score 14/100 on 3 of 12 signals
Discounting its cash flows at 7.8% (average of 2 methods) values the shares at $20.66; the price of $31.59 is 53% above that value.
Leak Score 33/100 on 9 of 12 signals
| Metric | WTRG | YORW |
|---|---|---|
| Verdict | Slightly overvalued | Overvalued |
| Price | $40.38 | $31.59 |
| Intrinsic value | $36.18 | $20.66 |
| Margin of safety | -12% | -53% |
| Leak Score | 14/100 (3/12) | 33/100 (9/12) |
| Market cap | $11.5B | $513M |
| Revenue growth, 5 years | 11.1% | 7.5% |
| Operating margin | 35.1% | 36.6% |
| Net margin | 21.6% | 28.5% |
| Return on equity | 8.1% | 9.0% |
| Debt to equity | 1.21 | 0.64 |
| P/E | 20.6x | 19.7x |
| Forward P/E | 17.2x | 17.9x |
| P/B | 1.6x | 1.7x |
| Dividend yield | 3.5% | 2.9% |