The Beta of American Water Works Co. Inc. is 0.59
BETA indicates whether a stock is more or less volatile than the market as a whole. A beta less than 1 indicates that the stock is less volatile than the market, while a beta more than 1 indicates that the stock is more volatile. Volatility is measured as the fluctuation of the price around the mean.
Beta is a measure of the risk arising from exposure to general market movements as opposed to idiosyncratic factors. The market portfolio of all investable assets has a beta of exactly 1. A beta below 1 can indicate either an investment with lower volatility than the market, or a volatile investment whose price movements are not highly correlated with the market. A beta greater than one generally means that the asset both is volatile and tends to move up and down with the market. Beta is important because it measures the risk of an investment that cannot be reduced by diversification. It does not measure the risk of an investment held on a stand-alone basis, but the amount of risk the investment adds to an already-diversified portfolio. In the capital asset pricing model, beta risk is the only kind of risk for which investors should receive an expected return higher than the risk-free rate of interest.
founded in 1886, american water is the largest publicly traded u.s. water and wastewater utility company. with headquarters in voorhees, n.j., the company employs more than 6,800 dedicated professionals who provide drinking water, wastewater and other related services to approximately 14 million people in more than 40 states as well as parts of canada. more information can be found at www.amwater.com.