Head-To-Head Survey: Consolidated Edison (NYSE:ED) and Enel (OTCMKTS:ENLAY)

Enel (OTCMKTS:ENLAY) and Consolidated Edison (NYSE:ED) are both utilities companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, profitability, risk, dividends, valuation and earnings.

Dividends

Enel pays an annual dividend of $0.26 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.3%. Consolidated Edison pays an annual dividend of $3.40 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.2%. Enel pays out 38.8% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Consolidated Edison pays out 59.4% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years. Consolidated Edison has increased its dividend for 52 consecutive years. Consolidated Edison is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

66.3% of Consolidated Edison shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.2% of Consolidated Edison shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent ratings and recommmendations for Enel and Consolidated Edison, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Enel	2	6	1	0	1.89
Consolidated Edison	5	7	3	0	1.87

Consolidated Edison has a consensus target price of $104.20, indicating a potential downside of 2.97%. Given Consolidated Edison’s higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe Consolidated Edison is more favorable than Enel.

Volatility and Risk

Enel has a beta of 0.82, indicating that its stock price is 18% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Consolidated Edison has a beta of 0.38, indicating that its stock price is 62% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares Enel and Consolidated Edison’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Enel	7.91%	12.66%	3.47%
Consolidated Edison	12.27%	8.79%	2.89%

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Enel and Consolidated Edison”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Enel	$85.44 billion	N/A	$7.59 billion	$0.67	16.72
Consolidated Edison	$15.26 billion	2.54	$1.82 billion	$5.72	18.77

Enel has higher revenue and earnings than Consolidated Edison. Enel is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Consolidated Edison, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Summary

Consolidated Edison beats Enel on 9 of the 16 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Enel

Enel SpA operates as an integrated operator in electricity and gas industries worldwide. It generates, distributes, transmits, and sells electricity; transports and markets natural gas; and constructs and operates generation plants and distribution grids. The company also provides energy management services; e-vehicle charging infrastructure for public and private customers; and engages in the energy commodities business. It operates wind, thermal, hydroelectric, nuclear, solar photovoltaic, and geothermal power plants. The company was founded in 1962 and is headquartered in Rome, Italy.

About Consolidated Edison

Consolidated Edison, Inc., through its subsidiaries, engages in the regulated electric, gas, and steam delivery businesses in the United States. It offers electric services to approximately 3.7 million customers in New York City and Westchester County; gas to approximately 1.1 million customers in Manhattan, the Bronx, parts of Queens, and Westchester County; and steam to approximately 1,530 customers in parts of Manhattan. The company also supplies electricity to approximately 0.3 million customers in southeastern New York and northern New Jersey; and gas to approximately 0.2 million customers in southeastern New York. In addition, it operates 545 circuit miles of transmission lines; 15 transmission substations; 63 distribution substations; 90,051 in-service line transformers; 3,788 pole miles of overhead distribution lines; and 2,314 miles of underground distribution lines, as well as 4,363 miles of mains and 380,870 service lines for natural gas distribution. Further, the company invests in electric and gas transmission projects. It primarily sells electricity to industrial, commercial, residential, and government customers. Consolidated Edison, Inc. was founded in 1823 and is based in New York, New York.