Operating Margin - Severn Trent PLC (LSE:SVT)

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Price: 2 701 GBX 0.07%

Market Cap: 8.1B GBX

28.7%

Current

24%

Average

13.8%

Industry

Operating Margin represents how efficiently a company is able to generate profit through its core operations.

Higher ratios are generally better, illustrating the company is efficient in its operations and is good at turning sales into profits.

Operating Margin

28.7%

Operating Profit

758.6m

Revenue

2.6B

Operating Margin Across Competitors

Country		Company	Market Cap	Operating Margin
UK		Severn Trent PLC LSE:SVT	8B GBP	29%
US		American Water Works Company Inc NYSE:AWK	26B USD	37%
BR		Companhia de Saneamento Basico do Estado de Sao Paulo SABESP BOVESPA:SBSP3	95B BRL	44%
US		Essential Utilities Inc NYSE:WTRG	10.9B USD	39%
UK		United Utilities Group PLC LSE:UU	8B GBP	36%
BR	B	Basic Sanitation Company of the State of Sao Paulo SABESP SWB:SAJA	6.3B EUR	44%
HK		Guangdong Investment Ltd HKEX:270	44.3B HKD	45%
CN		Grandblue Environment Co Ltd SSE:600323	23.9B CNY	23%
HK		Beijing Enterprises Water Group Ltd HKEX:371	25.4B HKD	21%
UK		Pennon Group PLC LSE:PNN	2.4B GBP	19%
CN		Beijing Capital Eco-Environment Protection Group Co Ltd SSE:600008	21.9B CNY	23%

Severn Trent PLC
Glance View

Market Cap

8B GBX

Industry

Utilities

Severn Trent PLC, a stalwart in the UK utilities sector, traces its origins to 1974 when water was first classified as an essential public service. The company has grown into one of the largest water and waste management entities in the United Kingdom, serving roughly 8 million people across the Midlands, a region rich in natural resources and industry. The company’s headquarters in Coventry are strategically situated within this heartland, enabling it to efficiently manage and maintain its extensive network of reservoirs, treatment facilities, and pipelines. Severn Trent PLC operates under the regulatory guidance of Ofwat, the Water Services Regulation Authority, which ensures that essential utilities are delivered in a sustainable and equitable manner. Despite its foundational ties to essential water services, Severn Trent’s profit model is multifaceted. The company’s revenue primarily flows from regulated water and wastewater operations, where it is responsible for overseeing the collection, treatment, and distribution of water, as well as the treatment and disposal of wastewater. While most of its business is governed by regulatory frameworks that delineate pricing and service quality, Severn Trent has also expanded into complementary ventures. Its non-regulated activities include renewable energy initiatives and municipal waste recycling, leveraging sustainable practices to supplement income and align with broader environmental goals. This dual approach not only instills resilience against regulatory constraints but also ensures the company's role in promoting sustainable resource management.

View SVT Analysis

SVT Intrinsic Value

What is Intrinsic Value?

Economic Moat is a concept popularized by Warren Buffett to describe a company's durable competitive advantage. It represents the 'moat' that protects a company from competitors and helps it sustain profitability over the long term. Our analysis of the past 10 years showed that companies with a wide economic moat significantly outperformed the market, delivering +645% returns compared to +189% for the S&P 500.

Our research into Economic Moat performance spans the past 10 years and focuses on companies with a wide economic moat. For this analysis, we calculated the average stock price returns of these companies, comparing them to the performance of the S&P 500 index over the same period.

The results were compelling: wide moat stocks achieved a remarkable +645% average return, compared to +188% for the broader market. This difference highlights the long-term benefits of investing in businesses that can maintain their market position and pricing power over time.

Note: This research does not account for survivorship bias. Past performance is not indicative of future results.

Determining whether a company has an economic moat requires both a deep dive into financial metrics and a qualitative assessment of its competitive position. Our analysts conduct a rigorous evaluation that focuses on identifying structural advantages that enable a company to sustain profitability and defend its market share over the long term.

The process begins with an analysis of a company’s historical financial performance. We assess how consistently the company has generated returns above its cost of capital and whether those returns have been stable or improving. However, financial performance alone doesn’t reveal the full picture. To understand the sources of these advantages, we evaluate five key drivers of economic moats:

Network Effect: We analyze whether the value of a company’s product or service grows as its user base expands. Platforms like payment systems or marketplaces benefit from this self-reinforcing.

Switching Costs: We assess whether customers face significant costs or disruptions when switching to a competitor’s product or service. High switching costs create customer stickiness and provide pricing power.

Intangible Assets: Strong brands, patents, and regulatory licenses can protect a company’s market position by creating barriers for competitors or enabling premium pricing. For example, a well-recognized consumer brand may command higher customer loyalty and margins.

Efficient scale: Occurs when a market is optimally served by one or a few players, making it unprofitable for new entrants to compete. This typically happens in industries with high fixed costs or geographic constraints, such as utilities or pipelines.

Cost Advantage: Companies with structural cost advantages can produce goods or services at a lower cost than their competitors, enabling them to offer competitive pricing or maintain higher margins. These advantages often arise from economies of scale, superior supply chain management, or proprietary technology. Firms like Walmart leverage their massive scale to negotiate better terms with suppliers, allowing them to undercut competitors on price.

By examining these factors in combination with a company’s financial performance and market positioning, we classify each company into one of three categories:

This rigorous evaluation ensures that our moat ratings are both comprehensive and reliable, giving investors the tools they need to make well-informed, long-term decisions.

The AI Assistant may sometimes provide inaccurate information.

Make your own investment decisions or consult a licensed financial advisor.

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Severn Trent PLC
LSE:SVT