AQN vs AWK vs VLTO Stock Comparison

Algonquin Power & Utilities, American Water Works Company and Veralto Prices as of Oct 26, 2026 Peers: Industry group
VLTO Veralto Corp
$103.34 +6.4% 1M -1.3% 1Y
Market cap
$25.28B
P/E
25.6x
Revenue (TTM)
$5.70B
Div. yield
–
Water Treatment Industrials
3 wins

Head to Head

12 decided of 12

American Water Works Company leads on 7 of the 12 questions below (American Water Works Company 7, Veralto 3, Algonquin Power & Utilities 2). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionAQNAWKVLTOLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $4.16B $27.67B $25.28B AWK
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 29.9x 24.5x 25.6x AWK
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 15.8x 24.8x 22.8x AQN
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +5.7% +6.9% +6.2% AWK
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 11.5% 21.3% 17.3% AWK
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 3.4% 6.2% 17.4% VLTO
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 7.0x 5.5x 0.9x VLTO
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.07% 0.02% 0.00% AQN
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months -6.9% +0.1% -1.3% AWK
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years -18.0%/yr -3.9%/yr — AWK
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 25.7% 22.8% 23.5% AWK
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 57/100 54/100 75/100 VLTO

Percentile Scorecard

AQNAWKVLTO

Each axis is the mean percentile of its metrics against the company's industry group. 100 is the best in the group, 50 the middle.

Scores by Axis

AxisAQNAWKVLTO
Valuation 76 #17 of 67 8 #62 of 67 80 #5 of 21
Growth 69 #21 of 65 59 #27 of 65 72 #6 of 19
Profitability 67 #22 of 64 95 #4 of 64 100 #1 of 17
Financial Health 38 #40 of 64 49 #33 of 64 52 #11 of 22
Shareholder Returns 36 #43 of 67 58 #29 of 67 70 #4 of 11
Overall 57 54 75
  • AQN ranked among 67 companies in Regulated Utilities
  • AWK ranked among 67 companies in Regulated Utilities
  • VLTO ranked among 22 companies in Environmental Equipment

Price Performance

Price return, split-adjusted, before dividends. Click a name to hide or show it.

Returns

PeriodAQNAWKVLTOSPY
1 month +7.4%+8.2%+6.4% -0.8%
3 months -11.0%+5.3%+9.6% +3.5%
6 months -14.9%+7.4%+18.6% +7.0%
Year to date -12.8%+8.6%+3.6% +12.2%
1 year -6.9%+0.1%-1.3% +13.0%
3 years +6.6%+21.7%+52.0% +86.3%
3 years, per year +2.1%+6.8%+15.0% +23.1%
5 years -62.8%-18.2%— +68.6%
5 years, per year -18.0%-3.9%— +11.0%
10 years -39.0%+95.4%— +258.0%
10 years, per year -4.8%+6.9%— +13.6%

Risk

MeasureAQNAWKVLTOSPY
Volatility, 1Y 25.7%22.8%23.5% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 28.4%21.2%22.4% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 0.23-0.460.23 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y -0.270.00-0.05 1.02
Max drawdown, 5Y -73.3%-39.7%-27.6% -25.4%
From 52-week high -23.2%-1.1%-1.5% -1.8%
52-week high $6.98$143.25$104.87 $779.14
52-week low $4.99$121.13$82.23 $631.97

Valuation History

Weekly multiples on trailing twelve-month fundamentals. Negative or extreme readings (a loss year, a collapsed denominator) are left out so the chart stays readable.

MultipleAQNAWKVLTO
P/E now vs peer median 29.6xmedian 20.8x 24.6xmedian 20.8x 25.6xmedian 25.6x
P/S now vs peer median 3.4xmedian 2.9x 5.3xmedian 2.9x 4.4xmedian 2.5x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 11.4xmedian 13.1x 15.2xmedian 13.1x 19.1xmedian 19.1x
P/FCF now vs peer median 25.8xmedian 36.7x -27.3xmedian 36.7x 24.1xmedian 25.2x
P/B now vs peer median 0.8xmedian 1.7x 2.4xmedian 1.7x 8.1xmedian 2.0x
PEG now vs peer median 0.84median 2.23 3.13median 2.23 5.72median 1.54

Financial History

Reported figures by fiscal period, placed on the calendar year (or quarter) each period ended in, so companies with different fiscal years line up.

Trailing twelve monthsAQNAWKVLTO
Revenue $1.21B $5.28B $5.70B
Gross profit -$435.80M – $3.43B
Operating income $525.40M $1.95B $1.30B
Net income $167.50M $1.13B $988.00M
Free cash flow $159.40M -$1.03B $1.05B
R&D – – $276.00M
EPS (diluted) $0.18 $5.76 $4.02
Cash & equivalents $55.00M $191.00M $2.12B
Total debt $6.64B $15.99B $3.38B
Shares (diluted) 772.41M 196.00M 245.80M
Enterprise value $3.96B $27.08B $17.92B

All Metrics

58 metrics · best in bold

Bold marks the best reading: the lowest positive value for multiples, leverage and payout, the highest for everything else. The bar under each value is its percentile against that company's own peers. Hover a value for its rank and the peer median.

Valuation

12 metrics
MetricAQNAWKVLTO
P/E 29.6x 24.6x 25.6x
P/FCF 25.8x -27.3x 24.1x
P/Operating cash flow 4.0x 12.1x 22.9x
P/S 3.4x 5.3x 4.4x
P/B 0.8x 2.4x 8.1x
P/Tangible book 0.8x 2.4x 11.1x
EV/EBITDA 11.4x 15.2x 19.1x
EV/EBIT 20.4x 22.5x 20.5x
EV/Revenue 8.9x 8.3x 4.7x
EV/FCF 67.1x -42.7x 25.3x
EV/Operating cash flow 10.4x 18.8x 24.0x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 0.84 3.13 5.72

Growth

14 metrics
MetricAQNAWKVLTO
Revenue growth (1Y) 5.7% 6.9% 6.2%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) -5.3% 9.3% 4.8%
Gross profit growth (1Y) 5.7% – 6.8%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) 6.1% – 6.5%
Operating income growth (1Y) 14.0% 8.3% 3.5%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) -5.8% 11.0% 3.7%
Net income growth (1Y) 112.7% 4.2% 10.6%
Net income CAGR (3Y) 52.3% 8.1% 4.4%
EPS growth (1Y) 153.3% 3.6% 12.5%
EPS CAGR (3Y) 35.1% 7.9% 4.5%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 6.7% 19.7% 9.8%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) 11.6% 12.8% –
Free cash flow growth (1Y) -45.1% -13.4% 11.0%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) 28.6% -7.5% –

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricAQNAWKVLTO
Gross margin -36.1% – 60.2%
EBITDA margin 77.8% 54.6% 24.4%
Operating margin 43.6% 36.9% 22.7%
Pretax margin 16.2% 27.3% 21.2%
Net margin 11.5% 21.3% 17.3%
FCF margin 13.2% -19.5% 18.4%
Operating cash flow margin 85.2% 44.2% 19.4%
Return on equity 1.5% 9.9% 32.4%
Return on assets – 3.1% 12.2%
Return on invested capital 3.4% 6.2% 17.4%
Return on capital employed – 6.0% 21.4%
Asset turnover – 0.1x 0.7x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 6.1x 2.1x 1.1x
Stock comp / revenue 1.0% – 1.3%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricAQNAWKVLTO
Debt / assets 47.7% 43.9% 39.5%
Debt / equity 1.3x 1.4x 1.1x
Net debt / EBITDA 7.0x 5.5x 0.9x
Debt / FCF 41.6x -15.5x 3.2x
Liabilities / assets 64.3% 68.0% 63.8%
Equity / assets 35.7% 32.0% 36.2%
Interest coverage 1.9x 3.0x 14.1x
Current ratio 0.9x 0.5x 1.8x
Quick ratio 0.4x 0.3x 1.5x
Cash ratio 0.1x 0.1x 1.0x
Altman Z-score 0.18 1.06 4.52

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricAQNAWKVLTO
Dividend yield 5.2% 2.4% 0.5%
Net buyback yield -0.2% – 1.7%
Shareholder yield 5.0% 2.4% 2.2%
Payout ratio (earnings) 180.2% 58.3% –
Payout ratio (FCF) 189.3% -63.9% –
Dividend growth (1Y) -30.8% 8.0% –
Dividend CAGR (3Y) -17.9% 9.9% –

Analyst Estimates

Solid lines are reported fiscal-year results; dashed lines are the consensus for the years ahead. Hover a year for the analysts' high and low, and how each result compared with its estimate.

ConsensusAQNAWKVLTO
Forward P/E 15.8xFY2026 24.8xFY2026 22.8xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $0.34FY2026 $5.72FY2026 $4.54FY2026
EPS growth, next FY 0.0%FY2026 +0.5%FY2026 +16.4%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after +17.6% +10.8% +7.9%
Revenue, next fiscal year $2.45BFY2026 $5.14BFY2026 $5.70BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +0.9%FY2026 +0.0%FY2026 +3.7%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +14.7% +9.9% +16.5%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersAQNAWKVLTO
Held by institutions 68.7% 100.0% 96.1%
Institutions holding 241 1,128 974
Change in shares held, QoQ +2.1% +8.0% +3.3%
Institutions buying 129 530 399
Institutions selling 67 416 384
Buyers to sellers 1.93 1.27 1.04

Return Correlation

Daily returns, last 12 months

1.00 means two stocks move in lockstep, 0 that they move independently. Pairs below about 0.5 diversify each other.

AQNAWKVLTO
AQN 1.00 0.19 0.12
AWK 0.19 1.00 0.27
VLTO 0.12 0.27 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, AQN, AWK and VLTO?

American Water Works Company (AWK) is the largest by market capitalisation: Algonquin Power & Utilities (AQN) $4.16B, American Water Works Company (AWK) $27.67B, Veralto (VLTO) $25.28B.

Which stock is cheaper, AQN, AWK and VLTO?

American Water Works Company (AWK) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Algonquin Power & Utilities (AQN) 29.9x, American Water Works Company (AWK) 24.5x, Veralto (VLTO) 25.6x). On next year's consensus earnings, Algonquin Power & Utilities (AQN) is cheapest (Algonquin Power & Utilities (AQN) 15.8x, American Water Works Company (AWK) 24.8x, Veralto (VLTO) 22.8x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

American Water Works Company (AWK) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Algonquin Power & Utilities (AQN) +5.7%, American Water Works Company (AWK) +6.9%, Veralto (VLTO) +6.2%.

Which company is more profitable?

American Water Works Company (AWK) has the highest net margin (Algonquin Power & Utilities (AQN) 11.5%, American Water Works Company (AWK) 21.3%, Veralto (VLTO) 17.3%). On return on invested capital, Veralto (VLTO) leads (Algonquin Power & Utilities (AQN) 3.4%, American Water Works Company (AWK) 6.2%, Veralto (VLTO) 17.4%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year American Water Works Company (AWK) returned the most: Algonquin Power & Utilities (AQN) -6.9%, American Water Works Company (AWK) +0.1%, Veralto (VLTO) -1.3%. Over five years, American Water Works Company (AWK) compounded fastest (Algonquin Power & Utilities (AQN) -18.0%/yr, American Water Works Company (AWK) -3.9%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Algonquin Power & Utilities (AQN) has the highest dividend yield: Algonquin Power & Utilities (AQN) 0.07%, American Water Works Company (AWK) 0.02%, Veralto (VLTO) 0.00%. Veralto (VLTO) pays no regular dividend.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, American Water Works Company (AWK) has been the steadiest (Algonquin Power & Utilities (AQN) 25.7%, American Water Works Company (AWK) 22.8%, Veralto (VLTO) 23.5%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, AQN, AWK and VLTO?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, American Water Works Company (AWK) leads on 7. Business Quant does not give investment advice; use the comparison as a starting point for your own research.

Data from SEC filings, exchange prices and consensus estimates, via Business Quant. Percentile scores compare each company with its own peer group, so two companies' scores are each relative to different peers unless you rank against the whole market. Price returns exclude dividends. Nothing on this page is investment advice.