Abstract
The down trending of investor-owned water and wastewater utilities and the continuous increase in utility abandonments and transfers within the regulatory environment motivated the study of investor-owned utilities, using samples from the state of Florida. The study determined the financial and nonfinancial drivers of utility andandonments and transfers. Using the NRRI and Acheampong et al. improved financial ratios, used in utility viability studies (liquidity ratio, leverage ratio, debt to equity ratio, profit trend ratio, growth and efficiency ratio, efficiency ratio, and the profitability ratio), the study identified sixteen nonfinancial performance measures under four categories (output measure, quality measures, owners’ equity structure, and the regulatory measures). The study employed logistic regression and dominance analysis to rank the performance measures that impact utility abandonments and transfers. Four financial performance measures the liquidity, leverage, growth, and efficiency, and the efficiency ratios, together with nine nonfinancial measures, determined the likelihood for a utility to abandoned or transferred. However, the impact of these measures was different among abandonments and transfers. The study used the dominance analysis to prioritize the drivers of utility abandonment and transfers. The nonfinancial performance measures for utility abandonments dominated financial performance measures. Utility abandonment is most likely due to nonfinancial difficulties encountered by the utility, leading to financial issues. The transfer of a utility either to a new utility or to an existing utility was not likely due to financial performance measures. The nonfinancial performance measures dominated the financial measures both in aggregate and individual drivers.