TakeoverPE & activists

HTOH2O AMERICA

Water Supply · $2.9B market cap · 465,000 employees

2.7×

More likely than average to be taken private

Top 4% of the Russell 3000 for a buyout by a private-equity firm, holdco or insiders. How it works

Takeover signals

What an activist or buyer would see: cheap, overpaid, diluted or under pressure.

4of 15 firedHow well they predict deals →
11 other checks
  • TSR below peersNo
    —
    3+ of last 5 years
  • High CEO pay despite TSRNo
    —
    Median CEO pay ≥ $15M while TSR trails
  • Earnings not backed by cashNo
    239% of net income
    Cash flow under 80% of net income
  • Dilutive SBCNo
    1% of revenue
    Over 10% of revenue
  • Payouts exceed cash flowNo
    24% of cash flow
    Buybacks + dividends over cash flow
  • Goodwill-heavyNo
    11% of assets
    Over 40% of assets
  • Shareholder dissentNo
    97% lowest support
    Any vote under 80% support
  • Net cashNo
    4.5× EBITDA net debt
    More cash than debt, positive EBITDA
  • AI-rollup shapedNo
    2 of 10
    10-K business scored 5+ of 10 as an AI-rollup target
  • Active 13DNo
    0 filings
    Active-intent 13D in 18 months
  • Net insider sellingNo
    $6M net
    Net sales over $10M in 12 months

Deal filings

FiledFormAcquirerPricePremium
Aug 17, 2018SC TO-T/ACALIFORNIA WATER SERVICE GROUP——
Aug 13, 2018SC TO-T/ACALIFORNIA WATER SERVICE GROUP——
Jul 20, 2018SC TO-T/ACALIFORNIA WATER SERVICE GROUP——
Jun 29, 2018SC TO-T/ACALIFORNIA WATER SERVICE GROUP——
Jun 21, 2018SC TO-T/ACALIFORNIA WATER SERVICE GROUP——
Jun 7, 2018SC TO-TCALIFORNIA WATER SERVICE GROUP——

Key numbers

Revenue
$806MFY2021: $560MFY2022: $587MFY2023: $678MFY2024: $736MFY2025: $806M
9.4% YoY
Operating margin
22.0%FY2021: 19.9%FY2022: 22.3%FY2023: 22.0%FY2024: 23.2%FY2025: 22.0%
4.8% YoY
EBITDA
$298MFY2021: $208MFY2022: $237MFY2023: $258MFY2024: $286MFY2025: $298M
4.4% YoY
Net debt / EBITDA
4.5×
$1.3B net debt

Financials

MetricFY2021FY2022FY2023FY2024FY2025YoYTrend
Revenue$560M$587M$678M$736M$806M 9.4% FY2021: $560MFY2022: $587MFY2023: $678MFY2024: $736MFY2025: $806M
Operating income$111M$131M$149M$171M$178M 4.1% FY2021: $111MFY2022: $131MFY2023: $149MFY2024: $171MFY2025: $178M
Net income$60M$74M$85M$94M$103M 9.2% FY2021: $60MFY2022: $74MFY2023: $85MFY2024: $94MFY2025: $103M
Operating cash flow$130M$166M$191M$196M$245M 25% FY2021: $130MFY2022: $166MFY2023: $191MFY2024: $196MFY2025: $245M
Stock-based comp$4M$5M$5M$6M$6M 15% FY2021: $4MFY2022: $5MFY2023: $5MFY2024: $6MFY2025: $6M
Dividends$40M$44M$48M$52M$59M 12% FY2021: $40MFY2022: $44MFY2023: $48MFY2024: $52MFY2025: $59M

13D filers

FiledFilerFormStakeIntent
Feb 14, 2023Van Valer Robert ASC 13D/A0.3%Passive
Feb 15, 2022MOSS GEORGE ESC 13D/A3.8%Passive
Feb 15, 2022Van Valer Robert ASC 13D/A11.1%Passive

Insider trading

+$6Mnet buying by insiders, open market, last 12 months
Bought $6M · 4 tradesSold $202K · 2 trades

Pay vs performance

No pay-versus-performance disclosure yet.