Financial Survey: Commerce Energy Group (OTCMKTS:CMNR) and Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL)

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) and Commerce Energy Group (OTCMKTS:CMNR) are both utilities companies, but which is the better business? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their profitability, analyst recommendations, dividends, earnings, risk, valuation and institutional ownership.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current ratings and recommmendations for Xcel Energy and Commerce Energy Group, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Xcel Energy	1	0	13	3	3.06
Commerce Energy Group	0	0	0	0	0.00

Xcel Energy currently has a consensus target price of $88.44, suggesting a potential upside of 8.57%. Given Xcel Energy’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, equities analysts plainly believe Xcel Energy is more favorable than Commerce Energy Group.

Profitability

This table compares Xcel Energy and Commerce Energy Group’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Xcel Energy	13.76%	10.46%	2.90%
Commerce Energy Group	N/A	N/A	N/A

Insider & Institutional Ownership

78.4% of Xcel Energy shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.1% of Xcel Energy shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 0.9% of Commerce Energy Group shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Xcel Energy and Commerce Energy Group”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Xcel Energy	$14.67 billion	3.46	$2.02 billion	$3.42	23.82
Commerce Energy Group	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A

Xcel Energy has higher revenue and earnings than Commerce Energy Group.

Summary

Xcel Energy beats Commerce Energy Group on 9 of the 10 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Xcel Energy

Xcel Energy Inc., through its subsidiaries, engages in the generation, purchasing, transmission, distribution, and sale of electricity. It operates through Regulated Electric Utility, Regulated Natural Gas Utility, and All Other segments. The company generates electricity through wind, nuclear, hydroelectric, biomass, and solar energy sources, as well as coal, natural gas, oil, wood, and refuse-derived fuels. It also purchases, transports, distributes, and sells natural gas to retail customers, as well as transports customer-owned natural gas. In addition, the company develops and leases natural gas pipelines, and storage and compression facilities; and invests in rental housing projects and nonregulated assets, as well as procures equipment for the construction of renewable generation facilities. It serves residential, commercial, and industrial customers in the portions of Colorado, Michigan, Minnesota, New Mexico, North Dakota, South Dakota, Texas, and Wisconsin. The company was incorporated in 1909 and is headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

About Commerce Energy Group

Commerce Energy Group Inc. through its subsidiaries provides electric power and natural gas to residential, commercial, industrial and institutional customers in California, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Maryland, New Jersey, Texas, Florida, Georgia, Nevada, and Ohio. The company was founded in 1997 and is based in Costa Mesa, California.