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Stock Comparison · Structural lead, mixed market

American Water Works Company vs Duke Energy: Which Stock Looks Stronger in 2026?

Duke Energy holds the cleaner structural position, with the lead spread across stability and growth. American Water Works Company still has the edge on profitability, which keeps the comparison from looking entirely one-sided. Both sides have seen trend damage — neither carries a clear market edge right now. With both trends damaged, the structural comparison carries most of the weight here.

The comparison is based on similar long-term financial trajectories, not sector labels. Both peer scores are relative to the S&P 500 universe, making them directly comparable.

Updated 2026-05-17

The lead is spread across stability and growth, rather than sitting in one isolated gap. The overall score gap is 18 points in favour of Duke Energy Corporation.

Trajectory Similarity
0.82
Similar
Peer-set rank: #5
within American Water Works Company, Inc.'s functional peer set

These two companies are linked by measured long-term financial trajectory similarity within the selected peer universe.

A solid similarity means the pair shares a clearly comparable long-term financial profile, even if individual dimensions still differ.

The match is driven mainly by margin consistency and revenue stability.

Similarity drivers
margin consistencyrevenue stability
What reduces the match
investment intensity
How to read the score
0.85–1.00 · Very similar0.70–0.84 · Similar0.55–0.69 · Moderately similarbelow 0.55 · Loose match
Peer-Relative Score
AWK
American Water Works Company, Inc.
49
Peer-Score
Signal qualitylow
Peer basis: S&P 500
vs
DUK
Duke Energy Corporation
67
Peer-Score
Signal qualitylow
Peer basis: S&P 500

Scores reflect position relative to comparable companies with similar long-term financial trajectories.

The largest gaps do not all point in the same direction.

Dimension spread: AWK vs DUK Profitability 67 47 Stability 27 81 Valuation 64 80 Growth 23 66 AWK DUK
Gap Ranking
#1 Stability +54
#2 Growth +43
#3 Profitability +20
#4 Valuation +16
Price Setup

Left means cheaper relative valuation. Higher means stronger structure.

Price setup map for AWK and DUK Stronger + cheaper Stronger + richer Weaker + cheaper Weaker + richer AWKDUK Relative valuation Structural strength

Duke Energy Corporation looks stronger on relative valuation, while the broader price setup remains mixed.

Valuation position uses peer-relative PE percentile (idx_pct_pe) where available.

Entry today — historical context

Where AWK and DUK each sit in their own 5-year price and valuation history.

BASED ON 5-YEAR HISTORY AWK Lower · below norm 0th 50th 100th 72 pct gap DUK Elevated · below norm 0th 50th 100th 21st 92nd
Today AWK sits in the lower portion of its own 5-year history (21st percentile), while DUK sits higher in its own history (92nd). Within each stock's own 5-year context, AWK is at a historically more favourable entry position than DUK. This reflects entry timing, not which company is structurally stronger — peer-relative analysis is a separate question addressed above.

Describes historical entry positioning only. Descriptive — not investment advice.

Relative Position vs Comparable Companies
Stability
On stability, Duke Energy Corporation ranks near the top of the group; American Water Works Company, Inc. sits in the weaker half.
Growth
The same broad pattern appears on growth: Duke Energy Corporation ranks near the top of the group, while American Water Works Company, Inc. stays in the weaker half.
Stability — Dominant Gap
AWK
27
DUK
81
Gap+54in favour of DUK

The stability gap is very wide, with the stronger side looking materially steadier through time.

What keeps the gap from being one-sided

Profitability still favours American Water Works Company, with a 7.7-point operating margin advantage keeping the comparison from looking fully resolved.

What this means for the comparison

The lead is built on both stability and growth — though profitability still provides a counterweight.

Explore full peer positioning in AssetNext

Break down the AWK vs DUK comparison across all dimensions with the full interactive tool.

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Other comparisons with conflicting dimension signals

Explore how AWK and DUK each compare against other companies in their peer groups.

Rule-based, descriptive analysis only. Derived from peer percentile dimensions. Not investment advice. Peer groups are determined algorithmically based on structural similarity — not by sector classification alone.

How AssetNext Peer Scores Work

AssetNext scores reflect each company's structural position within its functional peer group — not a ranking against all stocks simultaneously. Peers are identified by similarity across eight financial dimensions, including revenue growth trajectory, margin structure, capital intensity, and earnings stability. A score of 75 means the company ranks in the top quartile within its own peer group, not the entire market.

Four dimension scores drive the overall peer score: Growth (revenue trajectory and expansion dynamics), Quality (margin structure and capital efficiency), Valuation (peer-relative pricing on standard multiples), and Stability (earnings consistency and financial predictability). Each dimension is scored 0–100 relative to the peer group, then combined into an overall peer score using equal weighting.

Because scores are peer-relative, the same company can have slightly different scores in different index universes. On comparison pages, both companies are shown within their shared peer universe wherever possible — so the scores are directly comparable. The peer basis is stated on each score card.

Scores are recalculated periodically as underlying financial data is updated. All analysis is descriptive and rule-based — AssetNext describes structural realities and never issues buy, sell or hold recommendations.