California Water Service Group, through its subsidiaries, provides water utility and other related services in California, Washington, New Mexico, Hawaii, and Texas. The company is involved in the production, purchase, storage, treatment, testing, distribution, and sale of water for domestic, industrial, public, and irrigation uses, as well as for fire protection services. It offers its services to approximately 499,400 customer …
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California Water Service Group ranks #9 of 15
scored companies in Utilities - Regulated Water by moat score — the top 60%.
The widest moat in the group is American Water Works Company, I (AWK)
at 72/100.
Moat scores for companies ranked near CWT in Utilities - Regulated Water
How CWT scores on the Regulated Utilities defenses
Regulatory Franchise
Score 42
· 25% of the moat score
The franchise is the moat, granted rather than earned: an exclusive right to serve a territory in exchange for regulated prices and an obligation to supply.
Rate-Base Return Quality
Score 48
· 20% of the moat score
A utility earns an allowed return on the capital invested in its network, the rate base.
Dividend Sustainability
Score 70
· 18% of the moat score
Utilities are owned largely for income, and the dividend is only as safe as the operating cash flow behind it.
Capital Structure Discipline
Score 43
· 17% of the moat score
Regulated utilities carry more debt than almost any other sector, which suits how predictable their revenue is but makes credit quality a core competitive asset.
Operational Efficiency
Score 45
· 12% of the moat score
Efficiency is unusually consequential under regulation.
Essential Service Resilience
Score 42
· 8% of the moat score
Electricity, gas and water are bought in a recession at close to the volume bought in an expansion, which is why utility revenue barely tracks the economic cycle.
What is California Water Service Group's moat score?
California Water Service Group (CWT) scores 49 out of 100 on the StatsAlpha Moat Map, which rates its competitive advantage as developing. It ranks #9 of 15 scored companies in Utilities - Regulated Water, the top 60%. The score is a weighted composite of 6 competitive defenses, each measured against industry peers of 14 companies in Utilities - Regulated Water. Its strongest defense is Dividend Sustainability (70/100) and its weakest is Regulatory Franchise (42/100).
How does California Water Service Group compare with other Utilities - Regulated Water companies?
California Water Service Group ranks #9 of 15 scored companies in Utilities - Regulated Water by moat score. The widest moat in Utilities - Regulated Water is American Water Works Company, I (AWK) at 72/100. The companies ranked closest are Pure Cycle Corporation (PCYO) at 52 just above it and Aris Water Solutions, Inc. (ARIS) at 48 just below it.
How is the moat score calculated?
Each company is scored with an industry-specific template — Regulated Utilities in this case, chosen because the defenses that matter to a bank are not the ones that matter to a software company. Every defense combines several financial signals, and each signal is measured as a percentile against a peer group of 14 companies in Utilities - Regulated Water. The defenses are then weighted to produce the overall score out of 100.
Why is California Water Service Group scored with the Regulated Utilities template?
A regulated utility is a legal monopoly whose prices are set by a regulator rather than by a market. It cannot raise prices at will and it cannot be undercut, so most of the usual questions about competitive advantage barely apply. What matters is the quality of the regulatory bargain: whether the company earns the return it is allowed, funds its capital programme cheaply, and sustains the dividend investors own it for.
Which competitive defenses are measured for California Water Service Group?
The Regulated Utilities template measures 6 defenses, and CWT scores: Regulatory Franchise (42), Rate-Base Return Quality (48), Dividend Sustainability (70), Capital Structure Discipline (43), Operational Efficiency (45), Essential Service Resilience (42). Each is scored independently as a percentile against peers, so a company can be strong on one and weak on another — the overall score reflects how those defenses are weighted for this industry.
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