AES vs. AWK: AES vs. American Water Works Stock Comparison

November 11, 2026

How do AES (AES) and American Water Works (AWK) stack up? This page sets them side by side across company profile, performance and risk, profitability, growth, financial strength, dividends, and valuation, with selected fundamentals also measured against each stock's industry-group peers.

Company Profile

AES (AES) and American Water Works (AWK) both fall under the Utilities industry group, but AES is classified in Independent Power and Renewable Electricity Producers while AWK is classified in Water Utilities.

Company profile comparison for AES (AES) and American Water Works (AWK)
Profile Item	AES	AWK
Name	The AES Corporation	American Water Works Company, Inc.
Country/Region	United States	United States
GICS Sector	Utilities	Utilities
GICS Industry Group	Utilities	Utilities
GICS Industry	Independent Power and Renewable Electricity Producers	Water Utilities
GICS Sub-Industry	Independent Power Producers & Energy Traders	Water Utilities
Market Capitalization	10.61 billion USD	29.92 billion USD
Currency	USD	USD
Exchange	NYSE	NYSE
Listing Date	June 26, 1991	April 23, 2008
Security Type	Common Stock	Common Stock

Price Performance

Cumulative Growth

AES

AWK

GSPC

AES (AES) vs. American Water Works (AWK), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Growth of a $10,000 investment over the past five years. Adjusted for dividends and splits.

Trailing Returns

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Trailing total returns for AES (AES) and American Water Works (AWK). Returns over one year are annualized.

Calendar-Year Returns

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Calendar-year total returns for AES (AES) and American Water Works (AWK). Each bar is that year's total return, measured year-end to year-end.

Performance Metrics

Price performance metrics for AES (AES) and American Water Works (AWK)
Metric	AES	AWK
Total Return (1Y)	10.79%	17.61%
Total Return (3Y, Annualized)	3.44%	9.05%
Total Return (5Y, Annualized)	-5.12%	-0.39%

Risk Profile

Drawdown History

AES

AWK

GSPC

AES (AES) vs. American Water Works (AWK), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Drawdown from the running peak over the past five years. Each line shows the decline from its prior peak; 0% marks a new high.

Return Distribution

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Distribution of monthly total returns for AES (AES) and American Water Works (AWK). Each bar is the share of months whose return fell in that 5% bucket.

Risk Metrics

Risk profile metrics for AES (AES) and American Water Works (AWK)
Metric	AES	AWK
Volatility (1Y, Annualized)	25.19%	22.53%
Beta (5Y)	0.93	0.54
Max Drawdown (5Y)	-63.43%	-37.10%
Avg. Volume (3M)	8.50M	2.03M

Risk-Adjusted Performance

Risk-Return Positioning

AES and AWK are plotted by 1-year volatility (risk) and 1-year return. The dashed Capital Allocation Line runs from the risk-free rate through the shared industry median.

Risk-Adjusted Metrics

Risk-adjusted metrics for AES (AES) and American Water Works (AWK)
Metric	AES	AWK
Sharpe Ratio (1Y)	0.26	0.59
Sortino Ratio (1Y)	0.33	0.95

Profitability

ROE (TTM)

Both AES (AES) at 8.68% and American Water Works (AWK) at 9.95% land near their industries’ usual ROE ranges, so capital efficiency looks broadly in line with peers on both sides.

AES

Utilities industry group

8.68%

Max: 17.99%
Q3: 12.01%
Median: 9.44%
AES: 8.68%
Q1: 7.56%
Min: 2.17%

AWK

Utilities industry group

9.95%

Max: 17.99%
Q3: 12.01%
AWK: 9.95%
Median: 9.44%
Q1: 7.56%
Min: 2.17%

AES (AES) vs. American Water Works (AWK): A comparison of their ROE against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

Net Margin (TTM)

American Water Works (AWK) at 21.26% retains a top-quartile share of revenue as profit, ahead of AES (AES) at 13.16%, which keeps about the industry-typical share.

AES

Utilities industry group

13.16%

Max: 28.78%
Q3: 17.30%
AES: 13.16%
Median: 12.73%
Q1: 9.18%
Min: -0.20%

AWK

Utilities industry group

21.26%

Max: 28.78%
AWK: 21.26%
Q3: 17.30%
Median: 12.73%
Q1: 9.18%
Min: -0.20%

AES (AES) vs. American Water Works (AWK): A comparison of their net margin against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

Operating Margin (TTM)

American Water Works (AWK) at 43.18% operates in the top operating margin quartile, ahead of AES (AES) at 23.89%, which runs around its industry’s norm.

AES

Utilities industry group

23.89%

Max: 53.83%
Q3: 31.12%
AES: 23.89%
Median: 23.62%
Q1: 15.45%
Min: -4.90%

AWK

Utilities industry group

43.18%

Max: 53.83%
AWK: 43.18%
Q3: 31.12%
Median: 23.62%
Q1: 15.45%
Min: -4.90%

AES (AES) vs. American Water Works (AWK): A comparison of their operating margin against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

Profitability Metrics

Profitability metrics for AES (AES) and American Water Works (AWK)
Metric	AES	AWK
ROE (TTM)	8.68%	9.95%
ROA (TTM)	3.13%	3.50%
Net Margin (TTM)	13.16%	21.26%
Operating Margin (TTM)	23.89%	43.18%
Gross Margin (TTM)	21.34%	61.86%

Growth

Revenue Growth

American Water Works (AWK) at 9.74% is around its peer norm for revenue growth, while AES (AES) at -0.37% drops into the bottom quartile, signaling weaker demand or pricing momentum.

AES (AES) vs. American Water Works (AWK): A comparison of their Revenue Growth across different time periods.

EPS Growth

American Water Works (AWK) at 5.57% is around its peer norm for EPS growth, while AES (AES) at -46.61% drops into the bottom quartile, signaling weaker earnings momentum.

AES (AES) vs. American Water Works (AWK): A comparison of their EPS Growth across different time periods.

Growth Metrics

Growth metrics for AES (AES) and American Water Works (AWK)
Metric	AES	AWK
Revenue Growth (YoY)	-0.37%	9.74%
Revenue Growth (3Y CAGR)	-1.03%	10.67%
EPS Growth (YoY)	-46.61%	5.57%
EPS Growth (3Y CAGR)	--	8.06%

Financial Strength

Current Ratio (MRQ)

AES (AES) at 0.86 keeps current ratio within its industry’s typical mid-range, while American Water Works (AWK) at 0.39 runs in the tighter-liquidity quartile — a thinner cushion against current liabilities for AWK.

AES

Utilities industry group

0.86

Max: 1.90
Q3: 1.17
Median: 0.88
AES: 0.86
Q1: 0.66
Min: 0.29

AWK

Utilities industry group

0.39

Max: 1.90
Q3: 1.17
Median: 0.88
Q1: 0.66
AWK: 0.39
Min: 0.29

AES (AES) vs. American Water Works (AWK): A comparison of their current ratio against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

Debt / Equity (MRQ)

American Water Works (AWK) at 1.38 carries an industry-typical debt-to-equity mix, while AES (AES) at 2.43 uses more debt funding than most peers.

AES

Utilities industry group

2.43

Max: 2.63
AES: 2.43
Q3: 1.77
Median: 1.35
Q1: 0.84
Min: 0.00

AWK

Utilities industry group

1.38

Max: 2.63
Q3: 1.77
AWK: 1.38
Median: 1.35
Q1: 0.84
Min: 0.00

AES (AES) vs. American Water Works (AWK): A comparison of their debt-to-equity ratio against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

Financial Strength Metrics

Financial strength metrics for AES (AES) and American Water Works (AWK)
Metric	AES	AWK
Current Ratio (MRQ)	0.86	0.39
Debt / Equity (MRQ)	2.43	1.38
Net Debt / EBITDA	7.28	5.49

Dividends

Dividend Yield (TTM)

AES (AES) at 4.73% delivers top-quartile income for its industry, while American Water Works (AWK) at 2.26% pays a more typical yield — both are credible income propositions, AES the richer one.

AES

Utilities industry group

4.73%

Max: 6.66%
AES: 4.73%
Q3: 3.58%
Median: 2.85%
Q1: 0.66%
Min: 0.00%

AWK

Utilities industry group

2.26%

Max: 6.66%
Q3: 3.58%
Median: 2.85%
AWK: 2.26%
Q1: 0.66%
Min: 0.00%

AES (AES) vs. American Water Works (AWK): A comparison of their dividend yield against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)

American Water Works (AWK) at 59.60% keeps its payout within the industry’s typical band; AES (AES) at 28.27% pays out less than peers usually do, retaining more of its earnings — a policy difference more than a quality gap.

AES

Utilities industry group

28.27%

Max: 113.04%
Q3: 68.72%
Median: 56.38%
Q1: 32.38%
AES: 28.27%
Min: 0.00%

AWK

Utilities industry group

59.60%

Max: 113.04%
Q3: 68.72%
AWK: 59.60%
Median: 56.38%
Q1: 32.38%
Min: 0.00%

AES (AES) vs. American Water Works (AWK): A comparison of their payout ratio against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

Dividend Metrics

Dividend metrics for AES (AES) and American Water Works (AWK)
Metric	AES	AWK
Dividend Yield (TTM)	4.73%	2.26%
Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)	28.27%	59.60%

Valuation

P/E Ratio (TTM)

AES (AES) at 5.97 sits in the cheaper P/E ratio quartile, while American Water Works (AWK) at 26.00 sits in the richer quartile — a clear split in what investors pay for each dollar of trailing earnings.

AES

Utilities industry group

5.97

Max: 31.22
Q3: 23.30
Median: 19.64
Q1: 15.17
AES: 5.97
Min: 3.34

AWK

Utilities industry group

26.00

Max: 31.22
AWK: 26.00
Q3: 23.30
Median: 19.64
Q1: 15.17
Min: 3.34

AES (AES) vs. American Water Works (AWK): A comparison of their P/E ratio against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

P/S Ratio (TTM)

AES (AES) at 0.78 looks cheap on sales in the lower P/S ratio quartile, while American Water Works (AWK) at 5.60 looks rich in the upper quartile — a clear gap in price per dollar of revenue.

AES

Utilities industry group

0.78

Max: 6.35
Q3: 3.63
Median: 2.63
Q1: 1.52
AES: 0.78
Min: 0.00

AWK

Utilities industry group

5.60

Max: 6.35
AWK: 5.60
Q3: 3.63
Median: 2.63
Q1: 1.52
Min: 0.00

AES (AES) vs. American Water Works (AWK): A comparison of their P/S ratio against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

P/B Ratio (MRQ)

AES (AES) at 1.86 is valued about in line with its industry on P/B ratio, while American Water Works (AWK) at 2.51 carries an above-peer premium to book — AWK is pricier on assets.

AES

Utilities industry group

1.86

Max: 3.12
Q3: 2.21
AES: 1.86
Median: 1.83
Q1: 1.46
Min: 0.34

AWK

Utilities industry group

2.51

Max: 3.12
AWK: 2.51
Q3: 2.21
Median: 1.83
Q1: 1.46
Min: 0.34

AES (AES) vs. American Water Works (AWK): A comparison of their P/B ratio against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

Valuation Metrics

Valuation metrics for AES (AES) and American Water Works (AWK)
Metric	AES	AWK
P/E Ratio (TTM)	5.97	26.00
P/S Ratio (TTM)	0.78	5.60
P/B Ratio (MRQ)	1.86	2.51
Free Cash Flow Yield (TTM)	-30.54%	-5.45%