Topic: How To Invest

Hello Pat: Can you give your opinion on water stocks in general and PowerShares Water Resources Portfolio ETF and Aqua America in particular? Thanks.

Article Excerpt

We haven’t been able to find any water utilities we would recommend for investment. The water business in developed countries is subject to a lot of regulatory hurdles and has limited growth prospects. There may be opportunities in developing nations, many of which desperately need clean water. But investing in these markets can expose you to political risk. We think you should stick with the utility stocks we recommend in our newsletters. However, here’s a look at the ETF and stock you asked about: PowerShares Water Resources Portfolio ETF, $26.49, symbol PHO the New York (Units outstanding: 37.9 million; Market cap: $1.0 billion; www.invescopowershares.com), is based on the NASDAQ OMX U.S. Water Index, which includes companies whose products conse.rve and purify water for homes, businesses and industries. The ETF’s top holdings include Water Corp., Pentair, Xylem, Flowserve, Roper Industries, Lindsay Corp., Valmont Industries, American Water Works, Aqua America and Mueller Water Products. Its MER is 0.62%. We don’t see a lot of unrecognized value…