Sectors & IndustriesUtilitiesUtilities - Regulated Water

Best Water Stocks to Buy Now (2026)

Top water stocks in 2026 ranked by overall Zen Rating. "A" Rated stocks have returned an average of +32.52% per year, and are the best water stocks to buy now. Learn More.

According to Zen Ratings, our proprietary rating system that evaluates 115 factors proven to drive growth in stocks and assigns each stock in our system an overall letter grade as well as 7 individual Component Grades for Value, Growth, Momentum, Sentiment, Safety, Financials, and proprietary AI algorithms, the 3 best water utility stocks to buy right now are:

Consolidated Water Co (NASDAQ:CWCO) is the #1 top water stock out of 13 with a Zen Rating of B. Stocks with a rating of B have had an average return of +19.88% per year. Learn more.

The Component Grade breakdown for Consolidated Water Co (NASDAQ:CWCO) is: Value: C, Growth: B, Momentum: C, Sentiment: A, Safety: C, Financials: B, and AI: C.

Consolidated Water Co (NASDAQ:CWCO) has a Due Diligence Score of 53, which is 16 points higher than the water industry average of 37.

CWCO passed 19 out of 38 due diligence checks and has strong fundamentals. Consolidated Water Co has seen its stock return 41.44% over the past year, overperforming other water stocks by 32 percentage points.

Consolidated Water Co has an average 1 year price target of $40.00, an upside of 11.83% from Consolidated Water Co's current stock price of $35.77.

Consolidated Water Co stock has a consensus Strong Buy recommendation according to Wall Street analysts. Of the 1 analyst covering Consolidated Water Co, 100% have issued a Strong Buy rating, 0% have issued a Buy, 0% have issued a hold, while 0% have issued a Sell rating, and 0% have issued a Strong Sell.

California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT) is the #2 top water stock out of 13 with a Zen Rating of C. Stocks with a rating of C have had an average return of +7.53% per year. Learn more.

The Component Grade breakdown for California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT) is: Value: C, Growth: C, Momentum: C, Sentiment: C, Safety: C, Financials: C, and AI: C.

California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT) has a Due Diligence Score of 27, which is -10 points lower than the water industry average of 37.

CWT passed 9 out of 38 due diligence checks and has average fundamentals. California Water Service Group has seen its stock return 4.13% over the past year, underperforming other water stocks by -5 percentage points.

California Water Service Group has an average 1 year price target of $55.00, an upside of 26.12% from California Water Service Group's current stock price of $43.61.

California Water Service Group stock has a consensus Strong Buy recommendation according to Wall Street analysts. Of the 1 analyst covering California Water Service Group, 100% have issued a Strong Buy rating, 0% have issued a Buy, 0% have issued a hold, while 0% have issued a Sell rating, and 0% have issued a Strong Sell.

American States Water Co (NYSE:AWR) is the #3 top water stock out of 13 with a Zen Rating of C. Stocks with a rating of C have had an average return of +7.53% per year. Learn more.

The Component Grade breakdown for American States Water Co (NYSE:AWR) is: Value: C, Growth: C, Momentum: C, Sentiment: C, Safety: C, Financials: C, and AI: C.

American States Water Co (NYSE:AWR) has a Due Diligence Score of 43, which is 6 points higher than the water industry average of 37.

AWR passed 15 out of 38 due diligence checks and has strong fundamentals. American States Water Co has seen its stock return 3.33% over the past year, underperforming other water stocks by -6 percentage points.

Out of 10 water stocks that have issued dividends in the past year, the 3 water stocks with the highest dividend yields are:

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG) has an annual dividend yield of 3.5%, which is 1 percentage points higher than the water industry average of 2.62%. Essential Utilities's dividend payout is stable, having never dropped by more than 10% in the last 10 years. Essential Utilities's dividend has shown consistent growth over the last 10 years.

Essential Utilities's dividend payout ratio of 55% indicates that its dividend yield is sustainable for the long-term.

Global Water Resources (NASDAQ:GWRS) has an annual dividend yield of 2.98%, which is the same as the water industry average of 2.62%. Global Water Resources's dividend payout is not stable, having dropped more than 10% one times in the last 10 years. Global Water Resources's dividend has shown consistent growth over the last 10 years.

Global Water Resources's dividend payout ratio of 189.6% indicates that its dividend yield might not be sustainable for the long-term.

Artesian Resources (NASDAQ:ARTNA) has an annual dividend yield of 2.89%, which is the same as the water industry average of 2.62%. Artesian Resources's dividend payout is stable, having never dropped by more than 10% in the last 10 years. Artesian Resources's dividend has shown consistent growth over the last 10 years.

Artesian Resources's dividend payout ratio of 55.6% indicates that its dividend yield is sustainable for the long-term.

Water stocks were up 0.12% in the last day, and up 0.97% over the last week.

We couldn't find a catalyst for why water stocks are up.

Based on the Valuation rating, one of the 7 components of a stocks overall Zen Ratings grade, which evaluates factors including estimated earnings yield, earnings before interest and taxes/enterprise value, cash flow yield, free cash flow to price, and price-to-earnings growth (PEG ratio), the 3 most undervalued water stocks right now are:

Artesian Resources (NASDAQ:ARTNA) is the most undervalued water stock based on its Valuation Rating of C. Valuation is one of 7 Component Grades used to calculate the overall Zen Rating.

Artesian Resources has a valuation score of 43, which is 14 points higher than the water industry average of 29. It passed 3 out of 7 valuation due diligence checks.

Artesian Resources's stock has gained 7.94% in the past year. It has underperformed other stocks in the water industry by -2 percentage points.

Sabesp (NYSE:SBS) is the second most undervalued water stock based on its Valuation Rating of C. Valuation is one of 7 Component Grades used to calculate the overall Zen Rating.

Sabesp has a valuation score of 57, which is 28 points higher than the water industry average of 29. It passed 4 out of 7 valuation due diligence checks.

Sabesp's stock has gained 71.65% in the past year. It has overperformed other stocks in the water industry by 62 percentage points.

California Water Service Group (NYSE:CWT) is the third most undervalued water stock based on its Valuation Rating of C. Valuation is one of 7 Component Grades used to calculate the overall Zen Rating.

California Water Service Group has a valuation score of 29, which is 0 points higher than the water industry average of 29. It passed 2 out of 7 valuation due diligence checks.

California Water Service Group's stock has gained 4.13% in the past year. It has underperformed other stocks in the water industry by -5 percentage points.

42.86% of water stocks rated by analysts are a strong buy right now. On average, analysts expect water stocks to rise by 13.68% over the next year.

0% of water stocks have a Zen Rating of A (Strong Buy), 8.33% of water stocks are rated B (Buy), 66.67% are rated C (Hold), 16.67% are rated D (Sell), and 8.33% are rated F (Strong Sell).