Head to Head Analysis: Companhia Paranaense de Energia (NYSE:ELPC) versus Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES)

Companhia Paranaense de Energia (NYSE:ELPC) and Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES) are both utilities companies, but which is the better business? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their institutional ownership, earnings, valuation, profitability, dividends, risk and analyst recommendations.

Profitability

This table compares Companhia Paranaense de Energia and Eversource Energy’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Companhia Paranaense de Energia	N/A	N/A	N/A
Eversource Energy	6.82%	10.99%	2.79%

Insider & Institutional Ownership

80.0% of Eversource Energy shares are held by institutional investors. 0.4% of Eversource Energy shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Dividends

Companhia Paranaense de Energia pays an annual dividend of $0.23 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.8%. Eversource Energy pays an annual dividend of $3.01 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.9%. Companhia Paranaense de Energia pays out 32.9% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Eversource Energy pays out 129.7% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Eversource Energy has increased its dividend for 2 consecutive years. Eversource Energy is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Companhia Paranaense de Energia and Eversource Energy”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Companhia Paranaense de Energia	$22.65 billion	0.38	$749.00 million	$0.70	11.63
Eversource Energy	$12.69 billion	1.78	$811.65 million	$2.32	26.46

Eversource Energy has lower revenue, but higher earnings than Companhia Paranaense de Energia. Companhia Paranaense de Energia is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Eversource Energy, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of recent recommendations and price targets for Companhia Paranaense de Energia and Eversource Energy, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Companhia Paranaense de Energia	0	0	0	0	0.00
Eversource Energy	3	4	3	0	2.00

Eversource Energy has a consensus price target of $65.78, indicating a potential upside of 7.15%. Given Eversource Energy’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Eversource Energy is more favorable than Companhia Paranaense de Energia.

Volatility & Risk

Companhia Paranaense de Energia has a beta of -0.43, suggesting that its share price is 143% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Eversource Energy has a beta of 0.61, suggesting that its share price is 39% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

Eversource Energy beats Companhia Paranaense de Energia on 15 of the 17 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Companhia Paranaense de Energia

Companhia Paranaense de Energia – COPEL engages in the generation, transformation, distribution, and sale of electricity to industrial, residential, commercial, rural, and other customers in Brazil. The company operates through Power Generation and Transmission, Power Distribution, GAS, Power Sale, and Holding and Services segments. It is also involved in the piped natural gas distribution. The company operates hydroelectric, wind, and thermoelectric plants; and owns and operates transmission and distribution lines. It holds concessions to distribute electricity in municipalities in the State of Paraná and in the municipality of Porto União in the State of Santa Catarina. Companhia Paranaense de Energia COPEL was founded in 1954 and is headquartered in Curitiba, Brazil.

About Eversource Energy

Eversource Energy, a public utility holding company, engages in the energy delivery business. The company operates through Electric Distribution, Electric Transmission, Natural Gas Distribution, and Water Distribution segments. It is involved in the transmission and distribution of electricity; solar power facilities; and distribution of natural gas. The company operates regulated water utilities that provide water services to approximately 241,000 customers. It serves residential, commercial, industrial, municipal and fire protection, and other customers in Connecticut, Massachusetts, and New Hampshire. The company was formerly known as Northeast Utilities and changed its name to Eversource Energy in April 2015. Eversource Energy was incorporated in 1927 and is headquartered in Springfield, Massachusetts.