Seeking Alpha: The Market Seems To Believe Veolia Has Turned The Corner

France-based global utility Veolia Environnement (VE) has given investors a pretty wild ride. The company's excessive ambition for growth stoked a lot of bullish sentiment early in the decade, but the combination of Europe's deep recession and sloppy execution lead to disappointing margins, cash flows, and investors.

Veolia management started taking turnaround efforts seriously in 2013, pushing ahead with cost cuts, asset sales, and a restructuring of the company's operating priorities. The company still has a lot to do if its going to produce margins on par with its close peer Suez Environnement (OTCPK:SZEVY), let alone American comps like American States Water (AWR) or Waste Management (WM), but the better than 100% trough-to-peak move tells me that a lot of investors buy the self-improvement story and/or want to be positioned in basic services as Europe's economy turns around.

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The Market Seems To Believe Veolia Has Turned The Corner

Investopedia: Water May Be Essential, But That Doesn't Make Aqua America Cheap

Eventually, almost everyone who writes online about stocks and investments gets around to writing their "water article." Yes, water is essential for life and access to clean water is going to be an increasingly significant issue for many people in the coming decades. That doesn't automatically make water a great investment, though, as investors have frequently bid these stocks up to unreasonable levels only to see gravity take hold once again.

And that is the problem today at Aqua America (NYSE:WTR). The company's decision to rationalize its holdings (selling off businesses in less-promising areas like Maine) was a wise one, and the company's venture with Penn Virginia Resource Partners (NYSE:PVR) to bring water supplies to energy companies in the Marcellus is a good growth opportunity outside of the regulated residential water business. Nevertheless, this is a stock priced for virtual perfection today.

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http://stocks.investopedia.com/stock-analysis/2012/Water-May-Be-Essential-But-That-Doesnt-Make-Aqua-America-Cheap-WTR-PVR-RRC-AWK-AWR0802.aspx