Golden State Water

What Golden State Water does

Golden State Water Company is a California-regulated investor-owned water utility founded in 1929 and headquartered in San Dimas. It operates as a wholly-owned subsidiary of American States Water Company (NYSE: AWR) and serves over one million people across approximately a dozen certificated customer service areas spanning Northern, Central, and Southern California communities including Arden Cordova, San Gabriel Valley, Southwest Los Angeles County, Santa Maria, San Dimas, Claremont, Barstow, Calipatria, Bay Point, Clearlake, Apple Valley, and others. The company delivers potable water, fire protection, and irrigation services through owned infrastructure comprising 232 groundwater wells, 2,869 miles of pipeline, 27,118 fire hydrants, treatment facilities for PFAS and VOC removal, SCADA-based monitoring systems, and AMR metering technology.

Revenue is generated through regulated monthly metered rates to residential and commercial customers, with rates set by the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) through triennial General Rate Cases. The January 2025 GRC adopted $573.1 million of authorized capital investments across 2025-2027 and reset rate levels for that cycle. Q1 2026 operating revenue was $169.2 million (up $21.2 million year-over-year), full-year 2025 adjusted diluted EPS was $3.37 (up 10.9%), and 2026 EPS guidance is $3.68. The company is debt-financed through a $200 million five-year revolving credit facility and has maintained a 71-year consecutive dividend growth streak with a 55-56% payout ratio. Strategic activities center on tuck-in acquisitions of small adjacent water systems (most recently Crescent Bay in 2023 and Rural Water Company in 2015), an aggressive infrastructure renewal program, and expansion of contracted services to military bases through the parent-level ASUS subsidiary. The customer mix is overwhelmingly residential and small-commercial, with no meaningful single-customer concentration.

Name

Golden State Water

Legal name

Golden State Water Company

Website

https://gswater.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1929

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

501–1,000 employees

Short description

Golden State Water Company is a CPUC-regulated water utility serving over one million California residents across approximately a dozen certificated service areas, generating revenue through metered rates approved in triennial General Rate Cases and operating 232 wells and 2,869 miles of pipeline as a subsidiary of American States Water Company (NYSE: AWR).

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Water Utility Services

NAICS

Water, Sewage and Other Systems (2213)

SIC

Water Supply (4941)

akta.pro primary industry

Drinking Water Distribution Network Operations (Mains, Valves, Hydrants, Service Lines) (EUANAAAE)

akta.pro secondary industry

Raw Water Conveyance & Transmission (Aqueducts, Mains, Pumping Stations) (EUANAAAB)

Keywords

• Regulated water utility
• Drinking water supply
• Water infrastructure services
• Water distribution utility
• Water treatment services

Headquarters

HQ city

San Dimas

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices14 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Infrastructure, Operations, Supply Chain, Personnel, Others

Revenue model

1. Water Utility Operations: Revenue from regulated water utility operations serving residential and commercial customers across California. Rates are set by the California Public Utilities Commission through General Rate Cases, typically spanning 3-year periods. Q1 2026 revenue of $169.2 million with $21.2 million year-over-year increase driven by approved rate increases.
2. Electric Utility Operations: Electric utility segment generating revenue from regulated electricity services alongside water operations
3. Contracted Services (ASUS): Contracted services through American States Utility Services (ASUS) providing water and electric services to military bases. Management fee revenues from contracted services segment contribute to earnings growth.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Golden State Water Company is a CPUC-regulated water utility that produces, treats, and distributes drinking water to residential and commercial customers across designated service territories in California. Operations are supported by 232 groundwater wells, 27,118 fire hydrants, and 2,869 miles of pipeline. The company also provides water quality management, conservation programs, fire protection infrastructure, and customer billing services organized by Customer Service Areas.

Product overview

Golden State Water Company is a regulated water utility that provides water service to customers across multiple service areas in California. The company does not operate a software product platform but rather provides essential water infrastructure and utility services. The company's offerings include drinking water delivery, water quality management, conservation programs, and water infrastructure maintenance and upgrades. Services are organized geographically by Customer Service Areas (CSAs) including Arden Cordova, San Gabriel, Apple Valley, Central Basin East, Central Basin West, Barstow, Santa Maria, Southwest, Bay Point, Calipatria, San Dimas, Clearlake, Claremont, and Culver City. The company is subject to regulation by the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) and implements tiered rate structures, conservation programs, and capital investment projects to maintain and upgrade water infrastructure.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Residential Water Service
• Commercial Water Service
• Electric Utility Service

Quantifiable outcome

• 58.9% increase in operating cash flows to $71.6M in Q1 2026
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers11 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature6 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Metropolitan Water District of Southern CaliforniacoreOthersWater imported and distributed by Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, supplementing local groundwater supply from the Main San Gabriel Basin and Colorado River Aqueduct.

Scale indicators14 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• SJW Group: Holding company for San Jose Water Company and Connecticut Water (NYSE: SJW), a directly comparable investor-owned water utility with similar CPUC-style rate-regulated operations, customer base, and capital-intensive infrastructure model.
• York Water Company: Pennsylvania-based regulated water utility (NASDAQ: YORW) with a 200+ year operating history and a comparable combination of groundwater supply, treatment, and distribution — same pure-play investor-owned utility model.
• Consolidated Water Co. Ltd. NASDAQ-listed water utility and desalination services provider operating in the Caribbean. Directly comparable in core business model — producing and distributing potable water — though geographically distinct and with a more concentrated desalination focus.
• Artesian Resources Corporation: Delaware-based investor-owned water utility (NASDAQ: ARTNA) operating regulated water and wastewater systems under state public service commission oversight — a smaller but structurally identical peer in the regulated water utility category.
• California Water Service Group: Investor-owned California water utility (NYSE: CWT) directly competing with Golden State Water in overlapping California service territories under the same CPUC regulatory framework, with similar customer mix and rate-case-driven economics.
• Middlesex Water Company: New Jersey-based investor-owned water utility (NASDAQ: MSEX) with the same regulated tariff structure, customer base, and treatment-infrastructure operating model — a smaller-scale but directly comparable pure-play water peer.

Broad incumbents

• Essential Utilities: Multi-state water and natural gas utility (NYSE: WTRG, formerly Aqua America) with a regulated water segment directly comparable in service model and customer economics, supplemented by a gas utility portfolio that makes it broader than a pure water peer.
• American Water Works Company: Largest U.S. investor-owned water and wastewater utility (NYSE: AWK) serving ~14 million people across 14 states. Overlaps with Golden State Water in regulated water delivery and rate-base growth, but at much greater scale and geographic breadth.
• Liberty Utilities: Subsidiary of Algonquin Power & Utilities (now Liberty) operating regulated water, electric, and gas utilities across 13 U.S. states. Overlaps with Golden State Water in regulated water distribution under state utility commissions, with a broader multi-utility portfolio.

Emerging players

• Cadiz Inc. California-focused water infrastructure and supply company developing the Cadiz Valley Water Conservation Project in the Mojave Desert. Comparable as a California groundwater asset developer targeting Southern California water users, though at a much earlier commercialization stage.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/%40GoldenStateH20
• Facebookfacebook.com/GoldenStateH2O
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/golden-state-water-company
• Instagraminstagram.com/goldenstateh2o
• Xx.com/goldenstateh2o

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Subsidiaries2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A1 record

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Golden State Water