York Water hikes dividend by 4%

On November 22, 2022, The York Water Company (YORW) announced that it will raise its quarterly dividend by another 4.0 percent to $0.2027 per share. This marks the 26th consecutive year of annual dividend increases by the water utility and follows similar dividend hikes in the previous couple of years.

The next YORW dividend is payable January 17, 2023, to shareholders as of record date December 30, 2022. A new annual rate of approximately 81 cents per share yields 1.8% at a stock price of 45.38.

This is the 608th consecutive dividend to be paid by The York Water Company. JT Hand, President and CEO stated, "2022 has been a tremendously productive year for the Company in terms of capital placement, customer growth, and expansion of territory. We are proud to say we have now increased our dividends for 26 consecutive years, reinforcing our commitment to create value for our shareholders while responsibly investing in our water and wastewater utility infrastructure." York Water, which is the oldest publicly traded company in the nation, has never missed a dividend in over 205 years. This is believed to be the longest record of consecutive dividends in America.

York Water will now pay an estimated $12 million in dividends to its shareholders annually. The average dividend growth rate in the last five years was 4.0 percent annually. The biggest dividend hike in the last decade was announced in 2014 when YORK raised its dividend by 4.5 percent.

The York Water Company is an investor-owned water utility, impounding, purifying and distributing water. The company provides its customers within York and Adams Counties (Pennsylvania) with water, wastewater, and related services. The Company is regulated by the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission and obtains its water supply from the south branch and east branch of the Codorus Creek. YORW has two reservoirs, Lake Williams and Lake Redman. York Water, which is the oldest publicly traded company in the nation, has never missed a dividend in over 200 years. This is believed to be the longest record of consecutive dividends in America.