Electric, Gas and Water utilities have always been traditionally regarded as income stocks by investors. Their high current yields, and the relative stability of their distributions made them a preferred choice for investors who are seeking current income from their assets.

Utilities typically pay out a large portion of their earnings as dividends, which explains their slow dividend growth and high dividend yields. Most utilities operate as natural monopolies, which guarantees almost no competition in their specific geographic areas. It would be very costly to run two separate electrical grids, and such investment could take many decades to pay off. Thus utilities tend to generate stable earnings and revenues in any economic conditions, as people keep using water, gas and electricity in their daily lives no matter what.

A main risk factor for many utilities is government legislation in regards to greenhouse gases, which could increase their costs over time. Such legislation could force utilities to purchase CO2 pollution allowances, which could cut into earnings. The heavy government regulation could be the driving force behind future growth however. A recent phenomenon has been the smart grid initiative.

The smart grid initiative integrates information and communication technology into electricity generation, delivery, and consumption, making systems cleaner, safer, and more reliable and efficient. While it would be costly to modernize electric grids, there is some stimulus available from the department of energy. The department of energy plans to distribute $3.9 billion in Recovery Act funds for smart grid projects through two funding opportunities. The first provides $3.3 billion for deploying and implementing smart grid technologies across the country. The second provides $615 million for smart grid pilot projects. (Source: Yahoo Finance)

Because of the stability of their cash flows, utilities could afford increasing their dividends for long periods of time. Most utilities that I have stumbled upon have had a history of dividend increases, followed by a steep dividend cut, which is then followed by another string of dividend increases. More often than not however, dividend cuts in the Utilities Sector are followed by dividend increases for several years until the dividend payment reaches or exceeds the previous levels.