Which is better, ATO or CWT?

On the Buffett-Fit framework, Atmos Energy Corporation (ATO) currently grades higher than CWT — 56/100 (D grade) vs 33/100 (F). That said, "better" depends on which framework you trust — ATO wins on Warren Buffett, Benjamin Graham, Philip Fisher, Peter Lynch, Joel Greenblatt, Charlie Munger, and Terry Smith; CWT wins on none. The full pillar breakdown is on this page.

Should I buy ATO or CWT?

This page is an educational comparison, not investment advice. Both ATO and CWT are graded against the same Buffett 5-pillar framework (moat, earnings durability, management quality, financial health, valuation) plus six other documented investor frameworks. Read the side-by-side breakdown to see which one matches the criteria you care about most — and always do your own research before making any investment decision.

Is ATO better than CWT for value investing?

On the Buffett-style value-investing framework, ATO currently grades higher — 56/100 vs 33/100, a 23-point gap. The gap is driven by which pillars each stock passes; the table on this page shows moat, durability, management, financial health, and valuation side-by-side.

What's the difference between ATO and CWT on Warren Buffett's framework?

Both stocks are evaluated on the same five pillars: economic moat (durable competitive advantage), earnings durability (consistent profitability), management quality (capital allocation), financial health (conservative balance sheet), and valuation (margin of safety). ATO currently scores 56/100 (D grade); CWT scores 33/100 (F grade). The "Where each wins" section on this page breaks down which pillar each stock dominates.

Which has the stronger moat, ATO or CWT?

Moat strength is one of the five pillars in the Buffett-Fit score on this page. ATO and CWT are each scored on ROIC sustainability, gross-margin durability, and qualitative signals like brand strength, switching costs, network effects, and regulatory barriers. The pillar breakdown on this page shows the moat sub-score side-by-side so you can see which one has the more durable competitive advantage.

Which is more undervalued, ATO or CWT?

Valuation is one of the five Buffett-Fit pillars on this page. Both stocks are scored on owner-earnings yield, price-to-intrinsic-value vs the underlying compounding rate, and the margin of safety relative to a conservative DCF. The valuation sub-score in the table below tells you which one currently trades at a more attractive price relative to its underlying business quality.

Are ATO and CWT both Utilities stocks?

Yes — both Atmos Energy Corporation (ATO) and California Water Service Group (CWT) operate in the Utilities sector. That makes this a direct sector-peer comparison, which is the apples-to-apples way to use the Buffett-Fit framework: the score weighs each stock against its sector's specific quality and valuation benchmarks (sector-relative bonus), so the cross-stock comparison isn't distorted by inter-sector base-rate differences.

Is this ATO vs CWT comparison investment advice?

No. This page is an educational pattern-match against documented public frameworks (Buffett, Graham, Fisher, Lynch, Greenblatt, Munger, Smith), not personalised investment advice. The scores reflect how closely each stock matches each framework's documented criteria — they are not buy/hold/sell recommendations. Always do your own research and consult a licensed financial adviser for personalised advice.

Stock comparison

Atmos Energy

California Water Service Group

Scored across Buffett, Graham, Lynch and Greenblatt - plus a side-by-side metric table covering valuation, quality, growth and balance sheet.

ATO

Atmos Energy

Market cap

$29.29B

Sector

Utilities

CWT

California Water Service Group

Market cap

$2.59B

Sector

Utilities

Overall winner

Atmos Energy ATO

Wins on the combined sum of fit scores across all four strategies. Per-strategy breakdown below.

Fit scores by strategy

Strategy	ATO	CWT	Winner
Warren Buffett	56D	33F	ATO
Benjamin Graham	54C	43D	ATO
Philip Fisher	57C	31F	ATO
Peter Lynch	56C	51C	ATO
Joel Greenblatt	44D	35D	ATO
Charlie Munger	52D	35D	ATO
Terry Smith	39D	20F	ATO

Side-by-side metrics

Metric	ATO	CWT
Market cap	$29.29B	$2.59B
P/E (TTM)	21.7x	21.8x
EV/EBIT	24.9x	23.1x
ROIC (TTM)	4.81%	2.91%
Gross margin	51.43%	42.57%
Net margin	27.58%	11.77%
Revenue CAGR 5y	8.39%	6.04%
EPS CAGR 5y	10.16%	2.34%
Debt / Equity	0.6x	1.0x
Dividend yield	2.13%	2.92%

Where each one wins

The metrics with the biggest gap between the two - sorted so the most decisive edges read first.

ATO leads on

Market cap$29.29Bvs $2.59B+91%
EPS CAGR 5y10.16%vs 2.34%+77%
Net margin27.58%vs 11.77%+57%
ROIC (TTM)4.81%vs 2.91%+40%

CWT leads on

Dividend yield2.92%vs 2.13%+27%
EV/EBIT23.1xvs 24.9x+7%

More like ATO

ATO vs AXIA ATO vs DUKB ATO vs AEP ATO vs NEE ATO vs XEL ATO vs CWEN

More like CWT

CWT vs AXIA CWT vs DUKB CWT vs AEP CWT vs NEE CWT vs XEL CWT vs CWEN

Read the full Buffett-Brain analysis for ATO Read the full Buffett-Brain analysis for CWT

Related on invest-like

Strongest Moat Highest ROIC Warren Buffett strategy Economic Moat

Key terms in this analysis

ROIC Free Cash Flow (FCF)Economic Moat P/E Ratio Margin of Safety Quality Score

Educational tool. Fit scores are deterministic projections from public financials onto each investor's published criteria - not personal recommendations or advice.

Stock comparison

Atmos Energy

California Water Service Group

Scored across Buffett, Graham, Lynch and Greenblatt - plus a side-by-side metric table covering valuation, quality, growth and balance sheet.

ATO

Atmos Energy

Market cap

$29.29B

Sector

Utilities

CWT

California Water Service Group

Market cap

$2.59B

Sector

Utilities

Overall winner

Atmos Energy ATO

Wins on the combined sum of fit scores across all four strategies. Per-strategy breakdown below.

Fit scores by strategy

Strategy	ATO	CWT	Winner
Warren Buffett	56D	33F	ATO
Benjamin Graham	54C	43D	ATO
Philip Fisher	57C	31F	ATO
Peter Lynch	56C	51C	ATO
Joel Greenblatt	44D	35D	ATO
Charlie Munger	52D	35D	ATO
Terry Smith	39D	20F	ATO

Side-by-side metrics

Metric	ATO	CWT
Market cap	$29.29B	$2.59B
P/E (TTM)	21.7x	21.8x
EV/EBIT	24.9x	23.1x
ROIC (TTM)	4.81%	2.91%
Gross margin	51.43%	42.57%
Net margin	27.58%	11.77%
Revenue CAGR 5y	8.39%	6.04%
EPS CAGR 5y	10.16%	2.34%
Debt / Equity	0.6x	1.0x
Dividend yield	2.13%	2.92%

Where each one wins

The metrics with the biggest gap between the two - sorted so the most decisive edges read first.

ATO leads on

Market cap$29.29Bvs $2.59B+91%
EPS CAGR 5y10.16%vs 2.34%+77%
Net margin27.58%vs 11.77%+57%
ROIC (TTM)4.81%vs 2.91%+40%

CWT leads on

Dividend yield2.92%vs 2.13%+27%
EV/EBIT23.1xvs 24.9x+7%

More like ATO

ATO vs AXIA ATO vs DUKB ATO vs AEP ATO vs NEE ATO vs XEL ATO vs CWEN

More like CWT

CWT vs AXIA CWT vs DUKB CWT vs AEP CWT vs NEE CWT vs XEL CWT vs CWEN

Read the full Buffett-Brain analysis for ATO Read the full Buffett-Brain analysis for CWT

Related on invest-like

Strongest Moat Highest ROIC Warren Buffett strategy Economic Moat

Key terms in this analysis

ROIC Free Cash Flow (FCF)Economic Moat P/E Ratio Margin of Safety Quality Score

Educational tool. Fit scores are deterministic projections from public financials onto each investor's published criteria - not personal recommendations or advice.