Middlesex Water (NASDAQ:MSEX) versus Pennon Group (OTCMKTS:PEGRY) Head to Head Comparison

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

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Pennon Group and Middlesex Water”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Pennon Group	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
Middlesex Water	$194.69 million	5.55	$42.82 million	$2.59	22.14

Middlesex Water has higher revenue and earnings than Pennon Group.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current ratings and target prices for Pennon Group and Middlesex Water, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Pennon Group	0	1	0	0	2.00
Middlesex Water	0	1	1	0	2.50

Middlesex Water has a consensus target price of $61.67, indicating a potential upside of 7.53%. Given Middlesex Water’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Middlesex Water is more favorable than Pennon Group.

Dividends

Pennon Group pays an annual dividend of $0.92 per share and has a dividend yield of 7.5%. Middlesex Water pays an annual dividend of $1.44 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.5%. Middlesex Water pays out 55.6% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Middlesex Water has raised its dividend for 52 consecutive years.

Profitability

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

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

Institutional and Insider Ownership

79.5% of Middlesex Water shares are owned by institutional investors. 1.9% of Middlesex Water shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Summary

Middlesex Water beats Pennon Group on 10 of the 13 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Pennon Group

Pennon Group Plc provides clean water and wastewater services in the United Kingdom. It provides water and wastewater services for customers in Cornwall, Devon, and parts of Dorset and Somerset; water-only services in the areas of Dorset, Hampshire, and Wiltshire; and water and wastewater retail services to non-household customers in Great Britain. The company also offers regulated water to approximately 1.2 million customers in the Bristol region. Pennon Group Plc was incorporated in 1989 and is based in Exeter, the United Kingdom.

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.