Financial Survey: Chesapeake Utilities (NYSE:CPK) vs. Towngas Smart Energy (OTCMKTS:TGASF)

Towngas Smart Energy (OTCMKTS:TGASF) and Chesapeake Utilities (NYSE:CPK) are both utilities companies, but which is the superior stock? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their risk, earnings, analyst recommendations, dividends, valuation, institutional ownership and profitability.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of recent ratings and recommmendations for Towngas Smart Energy and Chesapeake Utilities, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Towngas Smart Energy	0	0	0	0	0.00
Chesapeake Utilities	0	3	1	0	2.25

Chesapeake Utilities has a consensus price target of $138.00, suggesting a potential upside of 3.44%. Given Chesapeake Utilities’ stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Chesapeake Utilities is more favorable than Towngas Smart Energy.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Towngas Smart Energy and Chesapeake Utilities”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Towngas Smart Energy	N/A	N/A	N/A	$0.40	1.08
Chesapeake Utilities	$930.00 million	3.46	$140.30 million	$6.27	21.28

Chesapeake Utilities has higher revenue and earnings than Towngas Smart Energy. Towngas Smart Energy is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Chesapeake Utilities, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Dividends

Towngas Smart Energy pays an annual dividend of $0.08 per share and has a dividend yield of 18.7%. Chesapeake Utilities pays an annual dividend of $2.94 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.2%. Towngas Smart Energy pays out 20.1% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Chesapeake Utilities pays out 46.9% 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. Chesapeake Utilities has raised its dividend for 22 consecutive years. Towngas Smart Energy is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and lower payout ratio.

Profitability

This table compares Towngas Smart Energy and Chesapeake Utilities’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Towngas Smart Energy	N/A	N/A	N/A
Chesapeake Utilities	15.12%	9.34%	3.73%

Insider and Institutional Ownership

12.3% of Towngas Smart Energy shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 83.1% of Chesapeake Utilities shares are owned by institutional investors. 1.4% of Chesapeake Utilities shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Summary

Chesapeake Utilities beats Towngas Smart Energy on 12 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Towngas Smart Energy

Towngas Smart Energy Company Limited, an investment holding company, sells and distributes piped gas in the People's Republic of China. The company operates through three segments, Sales and Distribution of Piped Gas and Related Products; Gas Connection; and Extended Business. It engages in the provision of natural gas and related services; construction of gas pipelines; sale of gas related household appliances; and other value-added services. The company also offers financing and engineering works services, smart energy solutions, and upstream and midstream services; and operates vehicle gas refilling stations. The company was formerly known as Towngas China Company Limited and changed its name to Towngas Smart Energy Company Limited in December 2021. The company was founded in 1998 and is headquartered in North Point, Hong Kong. Towngas Smart Energy Company Limited is a subsidiary of The Hong Kong and China Gas Company Limited.

About Chesapeake Utilities

Chesapeake Utilities Corporation operates as an energy delivery company. The company operates through two segments, Regulated Energy and Unregulated Energy. The Regulated Energy segment natural gas distribution operations in central and southern Delaware, Maryland's eastern shore, and Florida; regulated natural gas transmission in the Delmarva Peninsula, Ohio, and Florida; and regulated electric distribution in northeast and northwest Florida. The Unregulated Energy segment engages in the propane operations in the Mid-Atlantic region, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Florida; unregulated natural gas transmission/supply operation in central and eastern Ohio; generation of electricity and steam; provision of compressed natural gas, liquefied natural gas, and renewable natural gas transportation and pipeline solutions primarily to utilities and pipelines in the United States; and sustainable energy investments. This segment is also involved in the provision of other unregulated services, such as energy-related merchandise sale and heating, ventilation and air conditioning, and plumbing and electrical services. Chesapeake Utilities Corporation was founded in 1859 and is headquartered in Dover, Delaware.