TransAlta (TAC) Competitors

Essential Utilities (NYSE:WTRG) and TransAlta (NYSE:TAC) are both utilities companies, but which is the superior stock? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their risk, earnings, dividends, profitability, valuation, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership and media sentiment.

Does the media favor WTRG or TAC?

In the previous week, Essential Utilities had 6 more articles in the media than TransAlta. MarketBeat recorded 12 mentions for Essential Utilities and 6 mentions for TransAlta. Essential Utilities' average media sentiment score of 1.45 beat TransAlta's score of 1.31 indicating that Essential Utilities is being referred to more favorably in the media.

Company	Very Positive	Positive	Neutral	Negative	Very Negative	Overall Sentiment
Essential Utilities	10 Very Positive mention(s)	0 Positive mention(s)	2 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive
TransAlta	4 Very Positive mention(s)	0 Positive mention(s)	1 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive

Do analysts recommend WTRG or TAC?

Essential Utilities currently has a consensus price target of $44.50, indicating a potential upside of 13.45%. TransAlta has a consensus price target of $19.88, indicating a potential upside of 61.65%. Given TransAlta's stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe TransAlta is more favorable than Essential Utilities.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Essential Utilities	0 Sell rating(s)	1 Hold rating(s)	5 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.83
TransAlta	0 Sell rating(s)	1 Hold rating(s)	5 Buy rating(s)	1 Strong Buy rating(s)	3.00

Is WTRG or TAC more profitable?

Essential Utilities has a net margin of 27.62% compared to TransAlta's net margin of -6.79%. Essential Utilities' return on equity of 10.10% beat TransAlta's return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Essential Utilities	27.62%	10.10%	3.56%
TransAlta	-6.79%	-2.06%	-0.20%

Is WTRG or TAC a better dividend stock?

Essential Utilities pays an annual dividend of $1.37 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.5%. TransAlta pays an annual dividend of $0.19 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.5%. Essential Utilities pays out 58.8% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. TransAlta pays out -45.2% 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. Essential Utilities has raised its dividend for 32 consecutive years and TransAlta has raised its dividend for 2 consecutive years. Essential Utilities is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Which has more risk & volatility, WTRG or TAC?

Essential Utilities has a beta of 0.78, indicating that its share price is 22% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, TransAlta has a beta of 0.75, indicating that its share price is 25% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Which has higher valuation and earnings, WTRG or TAC?

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

Company	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Essential Utilities	$2.34B	4.71	$595.31M	$2.33	16.83
TransAlta	$2.08B	1.75	$167.12M	-$0.42	-29.27

Do insiders and institutionals hold more shares of WTRG or TAC?

74.8% of Essential Utilities shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 59.0% of TransAlta shares are held by institutional investors. 0.2% of Essential Utilities shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 13.1% of TransAlta shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Summary

Essential Utilities beats TransAlta on 14 of the 19 factors compared between the two stocks.