SSE (OTCMKTS:SSEZY) and Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES) are both large-cap computer and technology companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their risk, dividends, valuation, profitability, institutional ownership, earnings and analyst recommendations.
Institutional & Insider Ownership
0.1% of SSE shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 76.8% of Eversource Energy shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.3% of Eversource Energy shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.
Dividends
SSE pays an annual dividend of $0.63 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.4%. Eversource Energy pays an annual dividend of $2.41 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.0%. SSE pays out 59.4% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Eversource Energy pays out 69.9% 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. Eversource Energy has raised its dividend for 1 consecutive years. SSE is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and lower payout ratio.
Profitability
This table compares SSE and Eversource Energy's net margins, return on equity and return on assets.
| Net Margins | Return on Equity | Return on Assets |
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SSE | N/A | N/A | N/A |
Eversource Energy | 13.57% | 8.88% | 2.83% |
Valuation and Earnings
This table compares SSE and Eversource Energy's revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.
| Gross Revenue | Price/Sales Ratio | Net Income | Earnings Per Share | Price/Earnings Ratio |
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SSE | $8.65 billion | 2.22 | $-75,010,000.00 | $1.06 | 17.28 |
Eversource Energy | $8.53 billion | 3.24 | $909.05 million | $3.45 | 23.38 |
Eversource Energy has lower revenue, but higher earnings than SSE. SSE is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Eversource Energy, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.
Risk & Volatility
SSE has a beta of 0.7, meaning that its stock price is 30% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Eversource Energy has a beta of 0.28, meaning that its stock price is 72% less volatile than the S&P 500.
Analyst Ratings
This is a breakdown of current ratings and target prices for SSE and Eversource Energy, as reported by MarketBeat.com.
| Sell Ratings | Hold Ratings | Buy Ratings | Strong Buy Ratings | Rating Score |
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SSE | 1 | 4 | 6 | 0 | 2.45 |
Eversource Energy | 2 | 6 | 4 | 0 | 2.17 |
Eversource Energy has a consensus price target of $89.50, suggesting a potential upside of 10.96%. Given Eversource Energy's higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Eversource Energy is more favorable than SSE.
Summary
Eversource Energy beats SSE on 11 of the 17 factors compared between the two stocks.