American Water Works AWK announced that its West Virginia American Water unit plans to invest $0.9 million in infrastructure upgrades. The project involves replacing approximately 2,000 feet of aging water main with a new 6-inch PVC main.
West Virginia American Water continues to make regular investments to modernize its infrastructure and improve service reliability. The latest project forms part of the company’s plan to invest more than $129 million in infrastructure improvements across West Virginia in 2026.
The utility has consistently focused on upgrading and maintaining its water systems to provide reliable, high-quality service to customers. Over the past decade, West Virginia American Water has invested more than $805 million in infrastructure improvements, including the installation of approximately 168 miles of new water mains.
Importance of Investment for Aging Infrastructure
Investment in aging water and wastewater infrastructure strengthens system reliability and ensures the continued delivery of safe, high-quality services to customers. These upgrades reduce the risk of disruptions, improve operational efficiency and support smoother, more cost-effective system performance.
The U.S. water and wastewater infrastructure is deteriorating, with water main breaks occurring every two minutes, according to the American Society of Civil Engineers. The Environmental Protection Agency estimates that $1.25 trillion in investments will be needed over the next 20 years to maintain and expand water services.
Regulated water utilities like American Water Works and others are making systematic investments to upgrade and expand infrastructure to provide reliable services to their customers. American Water Works plans to invest $3.6 billion in 2026 and target $19-$20 billion of investment during 2026-2030.
Utilities Step Up Investments in Infrastructure Modernization
Apart from American Water Works, other regulated water utilities are also investing in infrastructure upgrades as per their financial capabilities. California Water Service Group CWT aims to invest $627 million in 2026 and nearly $2 billion in the 2026-2028 period to upgrade its infrastructure.
Essential Utilities WTRG invested $1.4 billion in 2025 and aims to invest $1.7 billion in 2026 for infrastructure development. This helps the company to provide safe and reliable service to customers and boost long-term growth.
Share Price Movement of AWK
In the past three months, American Water Works' shares have rallied 13.5% compared with the industry’s 7.2% growth.
Price Performance (three months)
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
AWK’s Zacks Rank
American Water Works currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).
A better-ranked stock to consider from the same industry is Global Water Resources GWRS, which carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2026 and 2027 earnings per share for GWRS has moved up 12.5% and 18.18%, respectively, in the past 60 days.
Research Chief Names "Single Best Pick to Double"
From thousands of stocks, 5 Zacks experts each have chosen their favorite to skyrocket +100% or more in months to come. From those 5, Director of Research Sheraz Mian hand-picks one to have the most explosive upside of all.
This company targets millennial and Gen Z audiences, generating nearly $1 billion in revenue last quarter alone. A recent pullback makes now an ideal time to jump aboard. Of course, all our elite picks aren’t winners but this one could far surpass earlier Zacks’ Stocks Set to Double like Nano-X Imaging which shot up +129.6% in little more than 9 months.
Free: See Our Top Stock And 4 Runners UpWant the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report
American Water Works Company, Inc. (AWK): Free Stock Analysis Report
California Water Service Group (CWT): Free Stock Analysis Report
Global Water Resources, Inc. (GWRS): Free Stock Analysis Report
Essential Utilities Inc. (WTRG): Free Stock Analysis Report
This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).