Analyzing ATN International (NASDAQ:ATNI) and Shaw Communications (OTCMKTS:SJRWF)

Shaw Communications (OTCMKTS:SJRWF) and ATN International (NASDAQ:ATNI) are both communication services companies, but which is the better stock? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their risk, earnings, valuation, institutional ownership, dividends, analyst recommendations and profitability.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current ratings for Shaw Communications and ATN International, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Shaw Communications	0	0	0	0	0.00
ATN International	1	1	0	0	1.50

Profitability

This table compares Shaw Communications and ATN International’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Shaw Communications	N/A	N/A	N/A
ATN International	22.55%	-10.16%	-3.35%

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Shaw Communications and ATN International”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Shaw Communications	N/A	N/A	N/A	$1.82	16.49
ATN International	$730.90 million	0.67	-$14.91 million	$10.28	3.11

Shaw Communications has higher earnings, but lower revenue than ATN International. ATN International is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Shaw Communications, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Dividends

Shaw Communications pays an annual dividend of $1.08 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.6%. ATN International pays an annual dividend of $1.16 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.6%. Shaw Communications pays out 59.6% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. ATN International pays out 11.3% 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. ATN International has raised its dividend for 3 consecutive years. ATN International is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

65.5% of ATN International shares are owned by institutional investors. 5.6% of ATN International shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Summary

ATN International beats Shaw Communications on 9 of the 12 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Shaw Communications

Shaw Communications Inc. operates as a connectivity company in North America. The company's Wireline segment provides cable telecommunications services, including video, Internet, WiFi, phone, satellite video, and data networking through a national fibre-optic backbone network to Canadian consumers, North American businesses, and public-sector entities. Its Wireless segment provides wireless services for voice and data communications serving customers in Ontario, British Columbia, and Alberta through Freedom Mobile; and in British Columbia and Alberta through Shaw Mobile. The company was formerly known as Shaw Cablesystems Ltd. and changed its name to Shaw Communications Inc. in May 1993. Shaw Communications Inc. was incorporated in 1966 and is headquartered in Calgary, Canada.

About ATN International

ATN International, Inc., through its subsidiaries, engages in the provision of digital infrastructure and communications services to residential, business, and government customers in the United States and internationally. The company operates through International Telecom and US Telecom segments. The company offers mobile, data, voice, broadband, and fixed services; handsets and accessories; and wholesale roaming, long distance voice services, and site maintenance services. It also leases critical network infrastructure, including towers and transport facilities; and provides managed information technology services, such as network, application, infrastructure, and hosting services. The company was formerly known as Atlantic Tele-Network, Inc. and changed its name to ATN International, Inc. in June 2016. ATN International, Inc. was founded in 1987 and is headquartered in Beverly, Massachusetts.