Middlesex Water Company MSEX reported fourth-quarter 2018 adjusted earnings of 43 cents per share, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate by a penny.Further, the bottom line improved 34.4% from 32 cents in the year-ago period.Total RevenuesThe company’s operating revenues were $33.3 million, in line with Zacks Consensus Estimate. The top line improved 5.8% on a year-over-year basis. This improvement was due to the introduction of new water rates and customer growth in its service territories.Middlesex Water Company Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise Middlesex Water Company Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise | Middlesex Water Company QuoteOperational UpdateIn the quarter under review, Middlesex Water’s total operating expenses were $26.1 million, up 12.6% year over year.Interest expenses totaled $1.8 million, up 18.7% year over year. Financial UpdateAs of Dec 31, 2018, Middlesex Water’s cash and cash equivalents were $3.7 million compared with $4.9 million in the corresponding period of 2017.As of Dec 31, 2018, the company’s long-term debt was $152.8 million compared with $139.1 million in the comparable year-ago period.Recent ReleasesAmerican Water Works Company AWK posted fourth-quarter 2018 earnings per share of 69 cents, which is in line with the Zacks Consensus Estimate and the year-ago figure.Aqua America Inc. WTR reported fourth-quarter 2018 earnings per share of 31 cents, lagging the Zacks Consensus Estimate by a penny.American States Water Company AWR generated fourth-quarter 2018 operating earnings of 37 cents per share, in line with the Zacks Consensus Estimate. Zacks Rank Middlesex Water currently has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.Today's Best Stocks from ZacksWould you like to see the updated picks from our best market-beating strategies? From 2017 through 2018, while the S&P 500 gained +15.8%, five of our screens returned +38.0%, +61.3%, +61.6%, +68.1%, and +98.3%.This outperformance has not just been a recent phenomenon. From 2000 – 2018, while the S&P averaged +4.8% per year, our top strategies averaged up to +56.2% per year.See their latest picks free >>Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report American Water Works Company, Inc. (AWK): Free Stock Analysis Report Aqua America, Inc. (WTR): Free Stock Analysis Report American States Water Company (AWR): Free Stock Analysis Report Middlesex Water Company (MSEX): Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here.