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Stock Comparison · Structural lead, mixed market

Atmos Energy vs United Utilities Group: Which Stock Looks Stronger in 2026?

United Utilities holds the cleaner structural position, with the lead spread across profitability and growth. Atmos Energy still has the edge on stability, which keeps the comparison from looking entirely one-sided. The market setup is broadly comparable for both — no clear directional signal from price behavior. The market is not adding a decisive signal either way — the structural read carries the weight.

The comparison is based on similar long-term financial trajectories, not sector labels. Peer scores are normalised within each company's primary universe (ATO: Russell 1000, UU.L: STOXX 600).

Updated 2026-07-05

The lead is spread across profitability and growth, rather than sitting in one isolated gap. United Utilities Group PLC leads by 20 points on the overall comparison score.

Trajectory Similarity
0.79
Similar
Peer-set rank: #29
within Atmos Energy Corporation's functional peer set

This pair is matched through long-term financial trajectory similarity within the selected peer universe.

The pair sits on a clearly comparable long-term path, though it is not a near-twin match.

The match is driven mainly by capital structure and margin trend.

Similarity drivers
capital structuremargin trend
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
ATO
Atmos Energy Corporation
58
Peer-Score
Signal qualitylow
Peer basis: Russell 1000
vs
UU.L
United Utilities Group PLC
78
Peer-Score
Signal qualitylow
Peer basis: STOXX 600

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: ATO vs UU.L Profitability 40 92 Stability 71 37 Valuation 74 79 Growth 47 94 ATO UU.L
Gap Ranking
#1 Profitability +52
#2 Growth +47
#3 Stability +34
#4 Valuation +5
Price Setup

Left means cheaper relative valuation. Higher means stronger structure.

Price setup map for ATO and UU.L Stronger + cheaper Stronger + richer Weaker + cheaper Weaker + richer ATOUU.L Relative valuation Structural strength

Neither company combines the stronger profile with the cheaper valuation.

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

Relative Position vs Comparable Companies
Profitability
Both rank well on profitability, but United Utilities Group PLC still holds a clear edge.
Growth
On growth, the same pattern holds: both are strong, but United Utilities Group PLC still leads clearly.
Profitability — Dominant Gap
ATO
40
UU.L
92
Gap+52in favour of UU.L

Return on equity adds support too, with a 18.1-point advantage.

What keeps the gap from being one-sided

A meaningful counterforce remains in stability, which keeps the comparison from looking completely one-sided.

What this means for the comparison

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

Explore full peer positioning in AssetNext

Break down the ATO vs UU.L comparison across all dimensions with the full interactive tool.

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Other comparisons with conflicting dimension signals

Explore how ATO and UU.L 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.