Contrasting Middlesex Water (NASDAQ:MSEX) and VIPR (OTCMKTS:VIPV)

Middlesex Water (NASDAQ:MSEX) and VIPR (OTCMKTS:VIPV) are both utilities companies, but which is the superior investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their risk, valuation, analyst recommendations, profitability, earnings, dividends and institutional ownership.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Middlesex Water and VIPR”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Middlesex Water	$194.69 million	5.68	$42.82 million	$2.59	22.68
VIPR	N/A	N/A	N/A	($3.49)	N/A

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

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current ratings for Middlesex Water and VIPR, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Middlesex Water	0	1	1	0	2.50
VIPR	0	0	0	0	0.00

Middlesex Water currently has a consensus target price of $61.67, suggesting a potential upside of 5.00%. Given Middlesex Water’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, equities research analysts clearly believe Middlesex Water is more favorable than VIPR.

Profitability

This table compares Middlesex Water and VIPR’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Middlesex Water	23.26%	9.59%	3.48%
VIPR	N/A	N/A	N/A

Institutional and Insider Ownership

79.5% of Middlesex Water shares are held by institutional investors. 1.9% of Middlesex Water shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 12.7% of VIPR shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Summary

Middlesex Water beats VIPR on 10 of the 11 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Middlesex Water

Middlesex Water Company owns and operates regulated water utility and wastewater systems. It operates in Regulated and Non-Regulated segments. The Regulated segment collects, treats, and distributes water on a retail and wholesale basis to residential, commercial, industrial, and fire protection customers, as well as provides regulated wastewater systems in New Jersey and Delaware. The Non-Regulated segment provides non-regulated contract services for the operation and maintenance of municipal and private water and wastewater systems in New Jersey and Delaware. Middlesex Water Company was incorporated in 1896 and is headquartered in Iselin, New Jersey.

About VIPR

VIPR Corp. focuses on the acquisition, development, and marketing of strategic nutraceutical and nutraceutical related products for personal consumption, apparel, and home applications. VIPR Corp. was formerly known as S2C Global Systems Inc. and changed its name to VIPR Corp. in August 2014. The company is based in Scottsdale, Arizona.