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what it is
It moves, treats, stores, and monitors water and chemicals for U.S. oil and gas wells.
how it gets paid
Last year Select Water Sol made $1.4B in revenue. water transfer & logistics was the main engine at $0.63B, or 45% of sales.
why growth slowed
Revenue fell 3.1% last year. The 14.8% gross margin mattered most because this company can move a lot of water and still leave shareholders with almost nothing after costs.
what just happened
The latest reported quarter showed just $0.03 in profit per share on a business that did $1.1B in revenue.
At a glance
B balance sheet — gets the job done, barely
25/100 earnings predictability — expect surprises
59.4x trailing p/e — you're paying up for this one
2.0% dividend yield — cash in your pocket every quarter
3.9% return on capital — nothing to write home about
xvary composite: 52/100 — below average
What they do
It moves, treats, stores, and monitors water and chemicals for U.S. oil and gas wells.
Oil fields still need water moved fast, treated safely, and recycled cheaply. WTTR bundles transfer, pipelines, chemicals, and monitoring under one roof, which makes it harder for customers to swap vendors mid-job. That matters because the company already serves this market with 3,700 employees across U.S. onshore basins, and field reliability is the product when your frac crew is waiting.
How they make money
$1.4B
annual revenue · their business grew -3.1% last year
water transfer & logistics
$0.63B
flat
chemicals & treatment
$0.35B
3.1%
pipeline infrastructure
$0.28B
+3.0%
monitoring & automation
$0.14B
+6.0%
The products that matter
builds and operates water pipelines
Water Infrastructure
$0.3B segment · 54% target gross margin
this is the rerating bet: management is targeting 20–25% growth in 2026 and a 54% gross margin.
future margin driver
transfer, recycling, and field water handling
Water Services
$1.0B segment · 71% of mix
it is still the core business at roughly $1.0B of revenue, but management expects it to be flat near term with 19–21% margins.
pays the bills
provides treatment chemicals
Chemical Technologies
$0.1B today · $200–$250M ambition
this is the smaller piece today, but management is pointing to a $200–$250M annual revenue range as part of the next leg of growth.
scale watch
Key numbers
59.4x
profit multiple
Price-to-earnings ratio → what you pay for each $1 of profit → you are paying $59.40 for a business with trailing profit of just $0.24 a share.
2.0%
operating margin
Operating margin → profit left after running the business → WTTR keeps about $0.02 from each $1 of sales.
3.9%
return on capital
Return on capital → profit generated from the money tied up in the business → 3.9% says this is a lot of work for a small payoff.
$309M
debt load
Long-term debt → money the company still owes years from now → $309M, or 14% of capital, is manageable but less comfortable when margins are only 2.0%.
Financial health
B
strength
- balance sheet grade B — adequate — nothing special
- risk rank 3 — safer than 50% of stocks
- price stability 25 / 100
- long-term debt $309M (14% of capital)
B — functional but not a standout on the balance sheet.
Total return vs. market
Return history isn't available for WTTR right now.
source: institutional data · return history unavailable
What just happened
missed estimates
The latest reported quarter showed just $0.03 in profit per share on a business that did $1.1B in revenue.
That gap is the whole WTTR story. Revenue was large, but gross margin was only 14.8% and the full-year operating margin was 2.0%, so very little reached the bottom line.
$1.1B
revenue
$0.03
profit per share
14.8%
gross margin
the number that mattered
The 14.8% gross margin mattered most because this company can move a lot of water and still leave shareholders with almost nothing after costs.
source: company earnings report, 2026
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What could go wrong
the #1 risk is paying a premium multiple before the infrastructure pivot shows up in returns.
high
valuation ahead of fundamentals
59.4x earnings and 3.9% return on capital do not naturally belong together. the multiple assumes the business gets better before the numbers prove it.
if the mix shift drags, the premium can compress without any help from the oil market.
med
dilution from the $175M secondary
the company sold stock at $12.75 per share and added about 13.7M shares. that gives management capital, but existing holders own a smaller slice of the outcome.
you need better returns on the new capital, not just more capital.
med
legacy water services still drives the story
water services is still roughly $1.0B of revenue and management expects it to be flat near term with 19–21% margins. if drilling activity softens, the old business can overwhelm the new narrative.
this is still tied to oilfield activity whether the market wants to admit it or not.
med
dividend coverage is weak
the stock yields 2.0%, but the payout ratio is 134%. that means earnings are not currently covering the payout.
if management has to choose between funding growth and defending the dividend, growth usually wins.
a stock on 59.4x earnings with 3.9% return on capital does not get many do-overs.
source: institutional data · regulatory filings · risk analysis
Pay attention to
core metric
water infrastructure growth rate
management is targeting 20–25% growth. if that number slips, the multiple starts looking like optimism in a hard hat.
next report
q1 margin check in water services
the company is guiding for 19–21% margins in the segment that still pays the bills. flat revenue is one thing. margin slippage is worse.
segment scale
chemical technologies ramp
management is talking about a $200–$250M annual revenue range. that is big enough to matter if the business actually gets there.
capital allocation
what the $175M offering actually buys
raising money is easy. earning a return on it is the part shareholders should obsess over.
Analyst rankings
earnings predictability
25 / 100
earnings are hard to model here. in human-speak, analysts should not sound overly sure about a business mid-pivot.
source: institutional data
Institutional activity
institutional ownership data for WTTR is being compiled.
source: institutional data
Price targets
3-5 year target range
n/a
n/a
$11
current price
n/a
target midpoint · n/a from current
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