Electricity, heating, water and communications have been essential services for well over a century. And over that time, not one of the literally thousands of mergers between operators has failed to produce a stronger and more resilient company.
No other industry can boast such a track record. And it’s the clearest possible endorsement of the advantages of utility scale. These sectors must be able to raise and effectively deploy massive amounts of capital to assuring universally reliable, affordable and environmentally sustainable service.
Essential services are heavily regulated so M&A always has to meet a much higher bar than other industries, as multiple government entities and often the courts consider the public interest. And the number of hurdles all but rules out hostile takeovers, since targets have many tools at their disposal to secure support of their own regulators.
Invest Smarter! Join Conrad’s Utility Investor!
Smart investing. Taking advantage of real opportunities and not fads (and knowing the difference). Finding the companies and stocks that will deliver for the long haul, so investing lets you live instead of investing turning into your life. Roger Conrad has dedicated his career to these principles—and that’s what Conrad's Utility Investor delivers.
Roger's favorite utilities for investors seeking superior price appreciation by taking calculated risks.
Harness the tried and true wealth-building power of rising dividends.
Nothing compounds wealth like reinvesting a rising stream of dividends.
Warning: Falling Dividends.
Roger's current take and vital statistics on more than 200 essential-services stocks.